


Side Effects

by IDsimmons



Series: In the Right Direction [2]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Adorable FitzSimmons (Agents of SHIELD), Angst with a Happy Ending, Comfort/Angst, Episode: s06e06 Inescapable, Episode: s06e09 Collision Course Part 2, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Jemma Simmons Needs a Hug, Kid Fic, Leo Fitz Feels, Psychic Bond, Season/Series 06, Side Effects
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2020-11-07 18:27:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 29,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20821832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IDsimmons/pseuds/IDsimmons
Summary: On board Izel's ship heading for home Fitz and Simmons realize they are experiencing side effects from the mind prison. They need to figure out if this change is a temporary echo from the Chronicoms meddling with things far beyond their understanding or is it a permanent side effect that they can use to their advantage?





	1. Collision Course Pt1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is going to be the longest fic I've ever written. It starts Post Collision Course Pt 1 and will go through the rest of the season. Enjoy :)

They were heading home. Finally. Izel's ship was quieter than usual and Jemma could hear Fitz softly cursing as he tried various ways to get the communication system working to contact the team. Jemma's eyes grew heavy and the exhaustion of escaping the Chronicom mind prison and then being nearly beheaded on Kitson was catching up to her. Honestly, she had been running on fumes searching for Fitz, refusing to stop for a second in fear that she would never see him again but now, he was less than five feet away, whole, breathing and heart beating like nothing had ever happened. For him, nothing has. She crossed her arms and shook away the aching feeling of loss, pushing down the year of grief she no longer feels like she has a right to. Old habits are hard to break. Even though they learned a lot about each other while trapped inside their heads, change doesn't happen overnight. 

"Fitz, I'm heading to sleep. You coming?" Fitz looked up, dazed and lost in concentration, mouth parted and eyebrows furrowed. She wanted to kiss that look she's seen so many times, right off his face. But he was focused and she couldn't distract him especially if it meant getting back in touch with home. 

"Sorry…" He looked torn and she knew he didn't want to let her out of his sight but she also knew he would never sleep if he just stopped in the middle of his work. So she kissed him quickly before he could say anything else, warmth brewing in her chest all the way to her toes at the freedom to touch her mouth to his again. 

"Goodnight Fitz, come to bed when you're done, yeah?" He nodded and hugging her tightly to him like he was trying to fuse his atoms with hers. They were always touching and reassuring, sometimes clinging when the emotions from the last year pulls on them too much trying to drag them into the unexpected undertow in the vast, endless hurricane of emotions that is always threatening beneath the surface. She buried her face in his shoulder before releasing him and walking herself to their shared bunk. The bed was not big enough for two people but they would make it work. They didn't have any belongings so she simply stripped the clothes she felt like she has been wearing for years at this point, combed her fingers through her hair and used the connected bathroom to rinse her face and brush her teeth with a thankfully provided toothbrush. She scooted close to the wall so Fitz would have room and exhaustion quickly claimed her. 

Fitz rubbed his eyes in frustration and fatigue. He can see how badly Jemma wants to be home. He just needs this stupid thing to work. He sighed heavily and resigned it to being a lost cause for the night. His fingers itched to make sure that Jemma was still there, just a few doors away and not a figment of his imagination. He left the wires and tools out, Jemma would give him hell in the morning, but right now straightening up his work space was the last thing he was concerned with. He quickened his pace and opened the door to their bunk, his shoulders immediately untensing when he sees Jemma curled against the wall, sound asleep. He lightly ran his fingers along her loose hair and watched her steady breathing, the rhythm calming him as the siren of sleep called out to him. He quickly got ready for bed, removing that blasted jumpsuit he would personally like to burn once he gets his own clothes back. Clad in his boxers he climbed into the bed, careful not to jostle his sleeping girlfriend... _ wife _ ...too much. He curls around her and for the first night in over a year he falls asleep immediately, feeling whole again. 

He feels a painful ache in his chest when he opens his eyes. His breathing comes in sharp painful bursts. A panic attack? He's confused because he went to sleep content and happy, maybe a bit frustrated with the lack of progress he was making with the ship's communication system but nothing panic attack inducing. Then he hears it.

_ You can't miss him. He's right there. If he knows you think about the other him you'll hurt him. Don't hurt him. Don't want to hurt him. Can't stop hurting. _

Jemma? He froze, his whole body tense as he realized what was going on inside her brain. So much for working everything out in the mind prison, then. The pain radiating through him, he realizes, is Jemma. This is what it would feel like to lose her. It's unbearable. He can't feel anything but aching loss and longing, love severed and reaching out like a phantom limb. He can't think or breathe and he needs to find Jemma. He walks until he finds a door and opens it to see Jemma and what he assumes is his other self working with a belt buckle both agitated, every word tense with fear. Jemma looks shaken and pale, frantically spiraling into panic about not being able to stop whatever was coming. Whatever it was, killed him, he thought darkly. His other self did exactly what he was desperate to do and kissed her hard, clinging to the not yet broken idea that nothing could break them apart. They were invincible. Now, they were still unstoppable together but they were also very much with done tempting fate. He honestly doesn't know how Jemma didn't just crumble, he would have. All of this pain is debilitating and deafening, it definitely explains the horror show popping up from her music box a little bit better. 

_ The only thing I truly fear is a life without you and that's never going to happen.  _

_ Do you promise? _

_ I promise. _

Fitz's bad hand starts shaking as he forces himself away from this memory of desperate promises, he yanks the door open and walks straight into another one trying to find his Jemma among them. 

_ No trouble with the straps this time. _

_ We've come a long way.  _ Hand in hand they jumped from the Quinjet. The words ringing in his ears as he stuck his head in door after door. This was him. They were one in the same and Jemma saw him die.  _ Don't joke about that. That messed me up.  _ He really had no idea, even after the mind prison. This was so hard. Of course, he was jealous, he wanted to be the guy she called her husband and joked about honeymoons and married in a wedding dress in a forest underneath the lighthouse. I mean, technically, he was but he missed so many memories and he was mad. They had a lifetime of memories together and now a whole year of missed and mismatched timelines when they have been in perfect sync since they were teenagers made him angry and sad. The weight of what that year contained threatened to crush him with the unfairness of it all. His wedding. The vows he would make to Jemma and the promise of her forever. Talk of kids and an actual grandson. Jumping out of airplanes, hand in hand, unstoppable. Things he dreamed about doing when the isolation in his jail cell drove him to the edge of madness, already done, he missed his chance, again. Except he didn't, because he did escape his cell, saved Jemma and did everything exactly as he had planned. His head spun and Jemma’s emotions stoked his own. He was just in the wrong time and missed it, all of the important bits. But it could be worse. He could be missing the cottage in Perthshire or the actual kids, if they managed, or the next sunrise. He gets to be there for all of that, thanks to some anomaly in Universe, so maybe he wasn’t there to say his vows but he will be here to keep them. Til death do us part. He opens another door and is surprised to find an empty lab. He's never been in here but he can take an educated guess from the other memories it's the lab in the new SHIELD headquarters. He glides his fingers over the smooth work surfaces and smiles a little bit. The lab with Jemma will always feel like home. He catches a glimpse of black boots poking out from under a desk in the corner. A quick glance at the organized chaos tells him it used to be his.

"Jemma? Is that you or is this another memory?" He knelt down and took in her red eyes and immediately became concerned especially since she wasn't making eye contact with him. He carefully set a shaking hand on her bent knee and scooted under the desk with her so that they sat side by side. He saw her face cross into confusion and then finally she met his eyes. 

"What do you mean memory?" He pulled her hand into his lap and absentmindedly started caressing her palm lightly as he tried to work out what was going on. 

“I walked into some doors that lead to memories that are most definitely not mine.” Jemma’s eyebrows furrowed.

“Like the mind prison?” She said sharply as she chewed on the inside of her bottom lip, suddenly tense, was it possible that they never escaped?  _ What if they only thought they did and they were only trapped deeper inside the endless maze that is their brains Atarah said she would separate them but when _ .  _ She couldn’t handle Fitz being ripped away from her again, it would destroy her. _

“I don’t think we are still in the mind prison.” Fitz cut her off before anymore of her anxiety could filter off onto him. “I have a theory but I’m still not sure of all of the variables yet.”

“Ok, what is this, then?” Gesturing dramatically around them. 

“We are in your mind, I think, but I don’t think we are trapped. All of the memories were yours. And-” He pauses trying to decide if it was a good idea to tell her that he was experiencing her very intense emotions, no point in hiding it if goes both ways and it seems like an important factor, he couldn’t recall getting the slightest hint of her emotions during even the most tumultuous times inside the mind prison. “Well…” He sighed heavily and pressed his fingers to his eyes before quickly mumbling “I can feel what you are feeling and that didn’t happen last time”. There was a beat of silence and he wasn’t sure then if she had quite caught what he had cowardly said under his breath half hoping that she wouldn’t hear. Then he noticed the way she was focusing her breath and controlled calmness washed over him with a hollowness echoing in his chest. He felt numb now that her maelstrom of emotions came to an abrupt stop. The feeling causing a swell of rising panic and overwhelming love for this woman who has been beside him through every insane moment in his life. For better or worse. 

“Jemma, don’t.”

“I’m fine, Fitz. Everything is fine” Jemma plastered on a smile “Let’s just get out of here, now, please.” The lab shook with the effort it was taking Jemma to push down her feelings. 

“Jemma,” His voice angry, grabbing her shoulders and pulling her to him. “You don’t have to be fine. Stop pretending, not with me, never with me. I honestly don’t know how you bear it.This pain is excruciating and you’ve been carrying it alone for so long. You can’t push this away, it’s not going to go away, you have to deal with it and I’m not going anywhere. I died and you are allowed to grieve. I can’t promise not to be a jerk about it sometimes but I get it. I saw you and me. It was me. It’s weird but I promise you, I get it, you won’t lose me by talking about him.” Jemma got up and pulled him along to another door. She hesitated a moment before pushing it open. They were greeted by sunlight and surrounded by trees. His breath caught when he saw Jemma in a white dress, Daisy standing beside her holding her flowers as Coulson began the ceremony. 

_ "Fitz, I knew from the moment I saw you, from our first conversation about dielectric polarization that you'd be in my life for a long time, but I didn't know you'd be my life, my heart, my home," Jemma gripped his hand tighter. "We joined this team for adventures and got more than we had hoped. I can't wait for our next adventure: building a family together. My love for you grows deeper and always will no matter where the universe takes us next." _

_ "I've been thinking about what to say. Just words don't really seem enough," Fitz shared. "I think that you are perfect, and I don't deserve you, Jemma. I don't deserve you, and I'm well aware that I'm the luckiest man on any planet."  _

Fitz’s eyes grew wet as he took in the scene playing before him. The wedding he would never get. It was breathtaking. Jemma’s words were perfect and seared their way onto his heart. This woman, stared death in the face and just said no, traversed the universe for him, and he still had no idea what he did to deserve her. Their rings pressed together as they clenched each other’s hand tighter and he enjoyed the feel of the cool metal pressed to his skin. Another door appeared and he walked through without a second thought coming face to face with the Kree that he was so insistent she tell him about. In quick succession he saw an enslaved Jemma, a way cooler version of himself swoop in with his proposal and rescue everyone, even if it didn’t go exactly to plan. Seeing a suave, confident version of himself with his hands all over Jemma made him irrationally angry. A stab of jealousy pierced his chest and feeling unnecessarily insecure and endlessly inadequate amplified by all of Jemma's emotions constantly coursing through him. He couldn't help himself and goaded Jemma “Well isn’t he Mr. perfect, too bad you’re stuck with me.” He huffed and realized too late when she went completely still next to him that he went too far. It was a low blow and the pain amplified from a dull pulse to radiating debilitation. He flinched when he saw Jemma trying to close off the pain and love and everything she was feeling, trying so hard to shut down in front of him and he couldn’t blame her. He was being an asshole, she could usually see right through him but right now, wrapped so tightly in her own pain anything else just made her retreat further. He hesitantly reached for her shoulder and then trailed his fingers lightly down her arm until their fingers intertwined. “Sorry, I’m stupid and a jealous idiot. I’m working on it” Jemma snorted and shifted closer. He no longer felt racking anxiety and tendrils of pain wrapped so tight it choked. He kissed her gently, experiencing a rush of love and warmth, good lord this woman was going to kill him one day as his cheeks burned red. Jemma laughed and snuggled into him, smiling warmly, bringing forward a particularly quiet moment with Daisy from that day. 

_ How is Fitz even here? _

_ I don’t know! He just… showed up out of nowhere with his own spaceship! _

_ That’s a baller move. Not to mention the whole bounty hunter look he’s rocking-- _

_ I still prefer him in cardigans. _

Jemma wound her arms around his waist as he happily hummed, content that he wouldn’t have to somehow pull off being a baller space marauder, frankly, it was a miracle he pulled it off once. “I miss your cardigans and our bed and the sun and our friends and our grandson. I just want to wake up and be home.” Fitz nodded in agreement, kissing the top of her head and then a look she recognized as things clicking together in his brain. “Fitz?”

“Wake up. What if whatever technology they used to link our minds together for the mind prison created a permanent pathway? Enoch said that it was never meant for humans and they didn’t know how it would affect us.”

“Maybe it created a dormant link that can only be accessed when both of us are asleep because that’s when the brain processes memories and works to preserve neural pathways.”

“What if the technology they used for their basically umm glorified robot population, where they can plug and unplug and erase and manipulate internal data, they unintentionally created a biological pathway between our brains like a...um...usb cable.”

“It’s kind of nice, though.” Jemma smiled “We should test it out and figure out the limits, also, figure out if its a residual effect from recently being in the mind prison. Like an echo that will fade. Or if it’s an unintended side effect courtesy of our friendly captors.” 

A loud bang against the wall of the ship had them both bolting upright in their single bed, Fitz instinctively curling himself around Jemma looking for danger. They both shared a wry look and began getting themselves ready for yet another day in space working on impossible problems and now adding one more to their always growing list of things they need to work out. 

As they were leaving their bunk dragging their feet more than usual, not quite ready to burst the bubble they created around themselves Jemma let out a groan and Fitz immediately was worried. He squeezed the hand he was holding and braced himself for anything.

“What is it?” 

“You do realize that once Daisy finds out that we are now actually psychically linked we are never going to hear the end of it right?” Fitz lets out a matching groan and runs his hand down his face like he hasn’t had worse things to deal with in the past week alone. 

“But she’s going to make so many puns. Can we not tell her? It’s not important, right? Just an insignificant little side effect that will probably just go away. Right? Jemma. Right?”


	2. Collision Course  Pt 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fitz and Simmons are still on board Izel's ship and working out the limits of their psychic link.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting this wayyyy later than I wanted. I might have gotten distracted by the Sims and my dog who apparently gets very dramatic whenever I don't pay attention to him while I'm writing.

Fitz and Simmons impatiently work side by side, Izel waltzing through their space every few hours to check on their progress and to interrupt their bickering. It felt good to bicker again, to work in each other's space and have someone to keep up with what they were talking about even if it seemed like a hopeless task. Both were anxious to see if they could repeat their psychic link again but for now they couldn't let on that anything was going on and they had no intention of finding out what Izel would do with that kind of information, the last thing they needed was to be imprisoned yet again. The commandeered crew seemed to bother them less and less which was fine with them, they preferred working in their little bubble. Finally, when they could respectably call it a night the pair walked hand in hand to their bunk. 

"Ok," Jemma started as soon as the door was shut and locked behind them, Fitz automatically turned to her eyebrows raised, his full attention devoted to her as she took a breath and went into lecture mode. "We need to test this thing out and figure out the different variables that the link will or won't work under or see if we can control it in any way. We should start with conscious, not touching. Conscious, touching. Unconscious, not touching. Unconscious, touching." She began ticking off her fingers, pacing with excited energy. "Once we have gone through those, if this is a permanent effect from the Chronicom technology, since we know that touching, unconscious definitely triggers it we could test it to see if how much or little we are in contact amplifies it or reduces the ability." Fitz coughs a little and nods in agreement. 

"Ok-bbb-but where do we start? Am I supposed to stand over here and see if I can, what, read your mind?" Fitz tries to shake off his nervousness, this was different then going to sleep and accidentally ending up inside Jemma's head, trying to get into each other's brains intentionally seemed a bit intrusive and a little bit awkward. Rubbing the back of his neck and sitting down on the small bed he watched as she made another sharp turn on the strip of floor, exasperated, before sitting herself next to Fitz on the bed.

" I don't know, it's not like there's any scientific journals on psychic links due to alien technology I can research at the moment, Fitz. My best references right now are Doctor Who episodes" She turned forward sitting crossed legged on the bed and Fitz mirrored her, careful that they weren't touching. "Just clear your mind and I don't know try to reach out to me with your mind?" Jemma said hesitantly and they both sat quietly for a few minutes, breathing steadily using techniques Agent May taught them until they burst out laughing folding into each other. 

"Yeah, I don't think that's doing anything" Fitz grumbled while Jemma laughed.

"It would have been cool, though, you could have made yourself a sonic screwdriver, very Doctor like!" She laughed at the face he pulled as he brightened up considering, now thinking about the possibilities of his very own sonic screwdriver. 

"Yeah, I was hoping 'A door, once opened, may be stepped through in either direction' would actually work" he quoted their favorite show with a big smile on his face feeling lighter than he had in a long time. 

"I mean, think about how helpful that would be, we could have had whole conversations without anyone overhearing!" Fitz threw a pillow at her and smirked at her statement. 

"Yeah, just imagine, freaking people out even more while we just silently stare at each other in a room. Brilliant!"

"Ugh, Fitz." Jemma smacked him lightly on the shoulder and leaned into his chest. "You're probably right, though." She threaded her fingers through his, still leaning against him. "Alright, try again." Fitz gave her a skeptical look but complied and closed his eyes. After a few minutes his eyes popped open to see her eyes already open and watching him intently. He used the hand not holding her's to stroke her cheek. 

"Nothing?"

"Nope. Just me in here." Jemma answered and then slowly got up and proceeded to get ready for bed. Fitz began to do the same when he realized he had a question he wasn't sure he wanted the answer to. Once they both completed their usual nighttime routines they both sat back on the bed and Fitz had no choice but to ask the question he didn't want to know the answer to. 

"So, how exactly do we not touch when we sleep? I don't know if you noticed but the bed is barely big enough for one person." He saw her hesitant expression and was immediately put off by whatever was going to come out of her mouth, experiment be damned. "Jemma?" It came out half question and half warning.

"Well, ideally, for the experiment "she added very quickly "You would sleep in a different room" She could see Fitz tense and open his mouth to protest but she cut him off before he even got a chance "But honestly, that's not happening, I'm not letting you out of my sight." She smiled brightly at him clutching his hand and trailing her other up and down his arm. "So, erm, one of us is going to have to take the floor." Fitz huffed and rolled his eyes, reaching over her suddenly to grab his pillow. 

"Bloody Experiment, like I would let you sleep on the floor. What kind of husband do I you think I am?"

He kissed her soundly before sliding down to the floor grumbling minimally. "I've definitely slept in worse spots than this in the last year and at least here I'm still beside you. " Fitz mistook her look of adoration for disbelief and continued insistently "Its become a bit of a talent of mine to fall asleep anywhere, ask Enoch, once I fell asleep while we were stowed away on this horrid smelling pit, I think it was a dumping ground for-" Jemma leaned down and kissed him soundly staring at his prone form sprawled out in the middle of the floor with just a pillow and frowned. There was only one blanket which was a problematic but he left it on the bed for Jemma. She rolled her eyes good naturedly at him and stood up and spread the blanket across him. She hopped her way across his now blanketed limbs taking up the entirety of the floor and grabbed her sweater and his jumpsuit covering herself sufficiently enough.

"Good night, husband " Jemma murmured into the soft glow of their room, Fitz smiled warmly, reaching up to trail his fingers along her arm before dropping back down to his side.

"Good night, wife" They both laid in the relative darkness, sleep being evasive, both slightly uncomfortable and craving the comfort of the other's presence next to them. Eventually, Jemma hears Fitz’s breathing even out like the master of sleep he claimed to be and she eventually succumbs to sleep herself. 

Jemma opens her eyes and looks around into the frantic energy that she immediately associates with Fitz but gets nothing else. Curious. She feels a bit disconnected from everything a bit like swimming underwater. To escape the emptiness of the room aside from the low hum of Fitz's chaotic thoughts she ran down a hallway of constantly changing doors and randomly picks one. She found herself immersed on the same ship that they were currently asleep on.

_ It's about a woman and being able to look her in the eye again.  _

She heard Fitz say as her chest constricted for the man standing strong in the distance. He was always trying to prove himself, always trying to show that he deserved her. It made her heart ache that he couldn't accept that she just loved him, always. He barrelled into her life and she loved every molecule of his awkwardness, his grumpiness, his gentleness, every rumpled sweater and curly hair on his head since they were 16 and painfully shy. He was always hers and she was his. Partners. He didn't have to do any of this, she would always be there by his side when he got lost and he would always find her. They may not have been in love with each other since they were 16 but they loved each other more than anyone else for the better part of their lives, he had to understand by now that he has earned every part of their relationship. Every all nighter, every lunch break, every study session, every Doctor Who marathon, every scientific discovery made, every text message and endless phone calls, every shared blanket covering them when they passed out on the couch, every night spent talking into the sunrise and two cups of tea carried earned both of them the right to lean on the other when they needed to. There was never a scoreboard and she needed to smash his to bits. Leopold James Fitz is a good man and she will tell him every single day until he gets it through his very thick skull. She barged through another door intent on finding her husband, simultaneously wanting to get it through his stubborn brain that he doesn't have to go around saving the universe to deserve her and snogging the sense out of him. She walked through the threshold and was jolted from the room before she could see anything. 

  
  


The ground vibrated and Fitz awoke to a distant unrecognizable song and immediately jumped up and was alert. "Jemma, do you hear that?" He whispered and shook her awake. She sat up slowly rubbing her eyes and shaking her head. 

"Hear what?" She looked confused and she tilted her head straining to hear anything out of the ordinary that would have woken him up. His heart rate relaxed back to normal when he realized everything was fine and he hauled himself up to the bed, experiment be damned. "Didn't like the not touching, couldn't feel anything" Jemma said sleepily as she snuggled into his chest, running her fingers up and down his stomach waiting for him to relax again. "Sorry for making you sleep on the-" Jemma realized he already drifted back to sleep and continued stroking her fingers along his warm skin until she fell back asleep too. 

A feeling of cold isolation and desperation tingles down her spine and claws its way into her contentment, sucking it away like a dementor.  _ Not good enough. Where is she. Not smart enough. You lost her again. Where is she. You don't deserve her. Where is she? Where is she? Where is she? Where is she? Where is she?  _

Jemma scratches at her chest trying to ease the black hole of swarming emotions. Desperation and panic force her to swing open the first door she sees in hopes she can get to Fitz 

_ Hunter: So... you and Simmons? _

_ Fitz: Yeah. Yeah, we're together now. Everyone knows. Even looked for a place together. _

_ Hunter: Oh, congrats, mate. I remember when you couldn't even admit that you liked her. _

_ Fitz: Maybe it should have stayed that way. Everything that keeps happening to us does seem like the universe doesn't want us to be together. _

_ Hunter: The universe doesn't want or care about anything. And even if it did, why wouldn't it want you to be together? You two are so perfect for each other, it makes everyone a little bit nauseous. _

_ Fitz: Maybe it's trying to protect her. _

_ Hunter: From what? _

_ Fitz: From me. From what I was in the Framework... 'cause that came from inside me. That... wasn't programming. _

Ugh, Fitz. Stupid, lovely man. She needed to find him, the loneliness clawing at every thought made her frantic as anxiety swelled through her mind making everything too sharp.  _ Where is she?  _ In her own mind she can push everything down and focus but Fitz, he picks at it like a scab he keeps reopening and infecting. She can't breathe, it's suffocating, all of this doubt and self loathing and it breaks her heart. She opens a door and finds Fitz clad in an orange jumpsuit, hair and beard longer than she's ever seen them, he's laying desolate on a cot talking to a picture of her. She only catches a bit of his proposal that he must be practicing before she loses all composure and barrels towards him, almost tackling him off the bed in the process. 

"You found me, I thought I would rot in here and no one would notice" He pressed a kiss to her head and scrunched his nose "Sorry, I probably smell. It's been awhile since anyone has been in here" 

"Fitz, this isn't real. You're not in prison, we are in your mind. We can leave whenever you want."

"No no no no no no it's a trick Jemma I can't leave until I tell them where you are and I lost you again. And again and again and again. He won't leave me alone, Jemma. I can't make him leave. I don't deserve you, I'm not good enough, I'm bad. That's why you had to leave. It's better for you." Jemma eyes teared up as she saw exactly what isolation had done to him. She gripped his shoulder hard. 

"Fitz. You are safe. You are loved. You are not in prison anymore. Leo, look at me, I'm here with you. We can get up and walk out that door."

"You are always here with me, Jemma. You keep me company. Like when you were undercover in Hydra." He whispered theatrically. "You keep him away." He gestures wildly, pulling at his hair making it fluffier. "I can't do this anymore Jemma. I can't find you and they won't let me go. And it doesn't matter anymore because maybe I belong in here. I can't stop hearing the cries and him and I know that you are just a hallucination like before but I don't deserve it. I should be left in here. Go away, now." Tears fall down Jemma's face as she tries to control her breathing and not give in to the cavern of darkness trying to sweep her in. She wants to sink onto the floor and cry for this man who has been utterly shattered by their life but she stays standing. 

"Let's go, Fitz. We're leaving. Now." She grabs his arm and pulls his resistant frame from the cot. She dragged his ass single handedly from the bottom of the ocean, she can drag it from this room. She quickly thought of a shared memory and shoved Fitz face first through the door, following and then slamming the door shut behind them. They were in their shared apartment long before the field team and romance when they were best friends who spent every second together. She sat him down on their second hand couch that was TARDIS blue and had a stubborn stain on the left arm where Fitz dropped his pizza one evening. She could hear his ragged breaths over the low volume of the television. She got up, squeezing his shoulder before going about making tea. She brought both cups over and handed his over carefully to still shaking hands. He opened his mouth to say something but then closed it, not knowing where or how to start. He never wanted her to see that. 

"I um-" Jemma set down her cup and gripped his hand tightly. 

"Fitz, I love you. Every part of you and I'm not going anywhere." Fitz closed his eyes against the overwhelming emotions and finally took a deep breath. 

"I don't deserve you Jemma Simmons but god I love you so much" he leaned forward and kissed her desperately, now steady fingers imprinting into her arms, the pair pulling apart gasping for air, resting their foreheads together, breath still intermingling. 

“Fitz.” Jemma starts trying to work out how to make it clear to him that he does not have to earn her love or merit her devotion, they were decades and several thousand moments past that. “Do you know why I picked this memory?”

“Because you wanted to get my sorry ass out of prison and this was the closest door?” 

“No.” Jemma said sharply, “You obviously remember this, this is your brain we are in, after all.” Fitz looked around paying more attention to previously overlooked details. Jemma’s notebook set on top of an empty pizza box on the coffee table, Doctor Who playing volume turned low, crumpled pages of thrown out ideas were scattered on the floor and around the bin where they had taken turns trying to make the balled up failed ideas into trash from varying distances.

“I brought you pizza and we drank energy drinks for the first-”

“And last time for me...thank you very much” Fitz chuckled at her interjection and continued.

“You needed help with a project, you were stuck and called me in a panic, so I brought home pizza and red bull and we stayed up all night until we had a workable plan.” He screwed up his face trying to remember what he was doing when she called him, summoning him home for an emergency of epic proportions, he believed she called it. 

“You were on a date.” Jemma poked at him and he swatted her away.

“No, that can’t be right.” She stared at him incredulously as he scrunched up his face trying to remember.

“You were in the middle of a date with Erin Henderson. And you just up and left in the middle of the film telling her I had an emergency and you needed to go. She didn’t have a ride home. She was very rude to me until we graduated.” Fitz blushed a bit and shrugged his shoulders. 

“You were always more important than anyone else. Guess that’s why dating never really seemed to work out, now that I think about it.”

“Oh, Fitz. Yeah, girls tend not to like being left in the middle of dates for another girl. Or being second best.” He shrugged unapologetically and kissed her again. 

“Worked out, didn’t it?”

“Yeah, Fitz. It did.” She grabbed his hand and walked through another door. “Do you remember this?” Fitz turned red and slowly nodded. They were outside on a blanket, his old telescope between them. 

“It’s when that cabbage head, Milton broke up with you. Right before Valentine’s Day, no less. So I took you out to look at the stars and we ate enough chocolate make ourselves sick.” Jemma leaned her head against him hoping that one day soon they will be looking at the stars through a telescope again instead of being among them. She was so sick of space. Jemma led him from memory to memory of little things that made up over a decade of a perfect symbiotic relationship. He needed her, she needed him, that was how they worked. 

“Fitz, I need you. I need you to hug me when things get to be too much, I need you to hold me together when I want to fall a part, I need you to see me when I’m trying to disappear, I need you to be my sounding board, I need you to be there right beside me, the whole damn time. We are partners, Fitz, I need to help you just like you help me, alright? We are in this together. You don’t need to deserve it, you earned it. Every tea, every pizza, every cancelled date, every I love you and hug. No evil Nazi overlord can take that away from you, I won’t let him.” Fitz hugs her tight and she finally feels some of the warring fear and doubt fade away. 

“My hero. Who says you’re not romantic?” Fitz murmurs and smiles into her neck as he trails kisses along her shoulder.

“I am the romantic one Leopold Fitz, best you accept it now” Jemma kissed his nose as the snuggled together in a feedback of warm contentment passing from one to the other. 

Three loud bangs on their door alert them that it is well past time to get up for the day. Fitz and Simmons snuggle together not ready to remove themselves from their warm cocoon. Simmons was the first to get up, never one to sit still when there was work that needed to be done. She rolled over on Fitz purposefully putting all of her weight on him and jostling his shoulder once she off the bed but he was a useless lump.

“Fitzzzz,” She whined now dressed as she yanked the blanket off of him and he yelped. “Get up, lazy bones.” Fitz put his arms under his head stubbornly after she swiped his pillow from under his head. 

“How about you come back to bed, pleaseeee, I’ll make it worth your time” He waggled his eyebrows before getting a pillow to the face. Jemma crossed her arms and tried looking as stern as she could muster, considering she would like almost nothing more than to crawl back into bed with Fitz. She wants to return to Earth slightly more so she grabs a leg and pulls until Fitz slides ungracefully onto the floor squeaking in indignation. He rubs his eyes and sits up leaning against the single bed. Jemma sits on the bed next to his head and runs her hand through his impressive bedhead, still thinking about the night before. 

“Fitz?”

“Hmmm?” His eyes were closed and she could tell he was moments from drifting back to sleep but she continued to run her fingers through his unruly hair.

“Do you dream about being locked up in prison a lot?” Fitz’s eyes pop open and he reaches for the hand gliding along his head, tangling their fingers together before answering honestly.

“No, not usually, well, not so much anymore.” He paused knowing it would make her feel guilty but continuing because they promised to stop hiding things from each other. “I think it was triggered. By...um...sleeping on the floor...by myself. I never really know what is going to trigger it but this time I had you so it’s all good Jemma. I swear. I’m alright.” He pulled himself up to the bed and kissed her softly before getting ready for the day. He had a good feeling about today. 


	3. Leap

**Fitz**

Izel passed through him for a split second and his mind snapped through Jemma's, both reaching out to each other for help, he then stood back as Izel moved back inside Davis walking him off the stairway. He was frozen by the gun being aimed at his head keeping him from pulling Davis back from the unforgiving grip of gravity or running to find Jemma. Every cell in his body was screaming to do something but self preservation won and he hated himself for it. Davis had a family and deserved to live just as much, if not more than him. It was dumb luck Izel had chosen him, they were both right there. He couldn't quell his worry for Jemma as he stood with Piper and Daisy feeling stabs of sympathy and guilt as he closed Davis' eyes and continued working to prevent one crisis after another. He projected a calm he did not feel as he stalked around the lab trying to help but also vibrating with the need to check on Jemma. 

"Daisy, Jemma's been hurt in the morgue. I have to go make sure she's ok. We don't know what Coulson-er whoever, is becoming, I think he did something."

"Woah, woah, woah, back up. Two questions...actually no, multiple questions. One. Sarge is dead, May shot him like a thousand times. Not a question, I guess it is? Sarge is dead, right? What survives that? Nope, don't want to know the answer to that one. Two. Where the hell has Simmons been? Three. How do you know she's hurt? Four...I don't have a fourth question yet but I'm sure I will." She crossed her arms and leveled him with a stare that made him feel like he was at the Headmaster's office. Why wasn't she the director, again? He assumed she would have been Coulson's logical choice. He would have to ask later. 

"Sarge was getting stronger instead of dying so Simmons figured it was safer, the less people knew about it, until we could figure out what was going on. She hid him in the morgue and informed Mack but the last time Izel possessed me, Jemma had to have been unconscious too because our minds linked up. As much as I'm hoping Simmons is suddenly napping on the job, I don't think that's it. We also mighthaveamindlink that seems to work when we are both unconscious." Fitz breezes past that nonchalantly trying hopelessly to avoid the reaction he knows is coming. He bounces on his toes eager to get to his wife but is stuck in place by a dumbstruck Daisy, blinking rapidly, mouth opening and then closing and then opening again with no sounds coming out, trying to process everything. He tried to speak again but she just held her hand up to silence him and shaking her head. Did he break her? 

"NOOOOOOOO WAY. MY TWO FAVORITE NERDS ARE PSYCHICALLY LINKED AND THAT'S NOT THE FIRST THING YOU THINK TO TELL ME?! Stay right there." Daisy turns sharply on her heel and quickly sends agents to the basement to get Simmons and find Sarge. "Storytime, now." Daisy commands with a maniacal glee that slightly worried Fitz, he vaguely wondered about the issues Jemma mentioned Daisy working through and the year spent in space in search of him and made a mental note to actually talk to his friend whenever they weren't in the middle of a crisis, or at least several simultaneous ones. Fitz explains the Chronicom mind prison and it's unintentional side effects quickly while diligently ignoring Daisy's creepy, suggestive smiles, occasional arm smacking and overly exclaimed delighted glee. Deke bounded towards them interrupting with questions about Izel's ability to play them like masterpiece theater, paying no mind to the conversation they were having nor respecting personal boundaries. Before Fitz turned away he grabbed Daisy's hand, noticing the quickly covered flinch as she smiled too brightly at him all of a sudden, weird, adding that to the list of things to ask about. "Hey, can you keep this to yourself? We are still trying to figure it out, we don't even know if it's permanent yet." Daisy's smile softened into a real one and she squeezed his hand back before letting it go. 

"Sure, no problem. I do reserve rights to make jokes until, oh I don't know, the end of time. I totally called it!" She cackled as Fitz turned to follow Deke through the other room when he heard Daisy call his name again, making him turn back.

"Fitz! It's good to have you back, you know that right?" He smiled brightly at her, nodding and continued towards his supposedly delightful grandson, he really questioned Jemma's judgment on this one. Bobo...really?

**Jemma**

They were finally home. But there was never enough time. It felt like they could never catch their breath. One minute they are toasting to SHIELD and the next there were gunshots. They haven't even unpacked their bags Daisy left for them in their designated bunk. Her head was throbbing and the new scrap on her cheek stung whenever she moved her mouth too much. All she wanted was to finally lie in her comfy bed that was actually made for two people and listen to Fitz breathe. It took everything in her not to lock him in the room with her and Sarge today, away from everyone else and the ever present danger. She pushed herself up from the floor and walked back up to the lab where she assumed everyone was gathered. She swore her heart stopped as she felt the familiar cold grip of panic start to claw through her when she walked into the lab and saw a body bag and Fitz was nowhere to be seen. She was heartbroken over losing Davis, she was forever indebted to him for staying on to find Fitz long after everyone else left. He had her back and now he was gone. She felt horribly guilty because all she could think of is how easily it could have been Fitz in that body bag again. She couldn't do this anymore. It was too much. She blindly walked, panic tunneling her vision as her feet walked a well worn path to a supply closet located immediately outside the lab doors. She needed to get away, now, before someone noticed her.

She yanked the door open, quickly tucking herself into a cleared corner, knees tucked to her chest, every muscle tense as she fought back tears and tried to control her breathing. She picked a spot on the wall and stared unseeing as flashes of that day bombarded her. How tight her ponytail was, how silent the door was when Mack came in, how she stopped understanding anyone's words, how she immediately felt numb, how she couldn't taste anything or feel anything or how her hands always shook. Fitz couldn't be dead, that just wasn't correct, they were wrong. She no longer felt like Jemma Simmons. She didn't want to know how to be Jemma Simmons without Leopold Fitz. Her breaths were coming sharply and her vision was going spotty, her cheeks were wet with tears and her mind was racing keeping her lost in that moment over a year ago. She didn't bother with the lights, the glow of the safety lights illuminated the small space quite enough, this was not her first panic attack in this particular cupboard. She just needed to get control of herself and she would be fine. No one would ever know, they never did. She dug her fingers into the backs of her knees and forced her ragged breathing into a steady counted rhythm. In through your nose, one two three, out your mouth, one two three. _ He is alive. He is safe. He is with me. _ She began her mental mantra trying valiantly to pull herself from the assaults of memories burned in her brain. Breathe in. Breathe out. Count. Control. Breathe. He is safe. He is alive. Breathe. Focus. She wasn't spiraling into her flashbacks anymore, she had a tight, if not slightly tenuous, control over her tumultuous emotions. She knew that she definitely was not alright to leave her little hideout yet. She made that mistake only once. So she breathed and tried to clear her mind and ignored the tight grip of panic lodged in her chest. Suddenly, the door burst open and her muscles tensed and her eyes shut trying to block out whoever was standing there witnessing her break down, to her utter humiliation. She tried harder to clamp down on the insistently seizing emotions but the swelling fear and panic unleashed itself demanding to be felt.

**Fitz**

He couldn't find her anywhere. She wasn't in the infirmary, the lab or with Sarge. He shouldn't have left her side. Bad things happen when they split up. He assumed she would find him after the agents Daisy had sent found her or she was checked out at the infirmary, not that she ever listened. He could still feel the adrenaline and fear thrumming under his skin from the confrontation with Izel. The guilt picking at him, relentless. He was right there, he could have done something, anything to stop Davis from falling. He could have saved him. He won't have a second chance like he did. He could have grabbed him or gotten in the way but then, he'd probably be dead too. He couldn't do that to Jemma again, not if he could help it. He passed the body bag in the lab and another wave of grief and guilt coursed through him. He still had to tell Simmons what happened and he needed to see with his own eyes that she was alright. He doubted Sarge escaped politely. He drug a hand down his face trying to think. He was so tired of constantly worrying if both of them would survive the day. He couldn't picture what the future looks like or how they got to it anymore. He just needed to find his damn wife. Then a memory flashed through his mind like a punch to the gut, his own body bag, what if Jemma did come looking for him and walked unknowingly into a minefield of triggers. Shit.

He hurried through the lab, not really knowing his way around, and started opening doors to see if they contained the person he was looking for. Granted, not the most efficient search method, but right now it's all he had. He worked his way up and down the corridor outside of the lab frantically opening and shutting mystery doors, muttering to himself. He's sure he looks insane but he can't be bothered to care at the moment. He got to the last door, he almost missed it, right outside the lab and pulled it open, almost shutting it when he registered a dark supply closet but as he turned to back out he caught a glimpse of pale skin. His heart sank at the sight of his wife having a full blown panic attack huddled in the corner of a dark supply closet. He rushed in, debating turning on the lights and decided against it, shutting the door behind him, encasing them in the tiny room, barely lit with safety lights. He wedged himself next to Jemma in the corner, careful to maintain a little bit of distance, not sure of what she needed but needing to do something to help her. He reached out and placed his hand lightly on her shoulder and squeezed when she let out a painful, grasping sob. Damn it, he should have gotten her from the basement himself the second he realized that something was wrong. Why can't he ever do anything right? He pulled her to him until she was basically curled up in his lap, her head pressed firmly against his chest next to his rapidly beating heart. His hands traced a path along her spine and then gliding back up to her ponytail. They both sat in a fragile silence with too much to say and no words to begin. Jemma slowly untenses but remains curled next to Fitz's heartbeat, a steadfast reminder that he is in fact, fine. 

**Jemma**

Fitz's fingers trailing softly up and down her back and absentmindedly weaving through strands of hair relaxed her more than any breathing techniques ever could. She felt annoyingly needy as she clung to his chest, listening to his heart beat out its steady staccato rhythm like her lifeline. The memories that had her in a stranglehold rescinded to the box she needed to keep them in, maybe it wasn't the healthiest of coping mechanisms but it worked and she couldn't afford to be a basket case right now, so yes, Fitz in the body bag was going into the bloody music box, nice and neatly crushed. She was so tired, her limbs were heavy with a mix of exhaustion and adrenaline but they were needed. They were always needed. "Fitz? I think this is my last mission with SHIELD." Fitz's head snapped up in surprise, he always assumed it would be him to be the one who started this conversation.

"Yeah, I know. It's time, isn't it?" Fitz exhaled slowly, feeling a weight lift off him, knowing that the future they dreamed about was that much closer. "We get Mack and Yoyo back, stop Izel, keeps evil zombie bats from inhabiting the planet, and decide what to do with the jackass waltzing around with our mentor's face, then retire from the field." Fitz ticked the list off his fingers. 

"Easy. No problem. Should be done before breakfast, then." Jemma let out a small snort of laughter and shifted to her feet, pulling Fitz up with her. She rose up on her toes and kissed him warmly, leaning her forehead against his. She remained reluctant to face everything waiting for them outside the door, still reeling from the panic attack she ruthlessly shoved into a box, anxiety lingering as she hesitated and shirked away from the door, staying put, exhausted in every sense of the word. She buried her face in Fitz's shoulder bolstering herself for the onslaught of never ending fear, a rollercoaster she wanted off of. 

**Fitz**

Fitz watched as she turned away from the closet door and sighed. He knew he couldn't rush her but he also knew that they needed some form of sleep to remain useful and that they were also expected to figure out a solution to stop Izel from wearing people like sock puppets, he ran his free hand down his face and made a decision, his eyes were heavy and a headache was rapidly undoing whatever composure he was holding on to, a quick nap first then they figure out the Izel thing. 

"Let's head back to our quarters, sleep for a few hours, and then we can start working on the body snatching problem." 

"Fitz, we have no time. We haven't got the slightest idea on how to stop Izel. She has Mack and Yoyo and we-" Fitz cut her off, his lips on her's, seeking and giving comfort. 

"In the last two days we have gone from deep space being nearly murdered by a zombie crew, to being back on Earth being nearly murdered by a crazy alien lady and oh right, some guy who can't die wearing Coulson's face just knocked you unconscious, so yeah, I think we have time for a quick nap. I don't know what the time difference is between space and here but we need at least a few hours of sleep, otherwise we will be completely useless to the team anyway." He held his hand out and moved towards the door. He saw her hesitate and his heart ached for the amount of pain she endured this past year and the scars it left behind, whether she acknowledged them or not. He watched as she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin, grabbing hold of his hand. He immediately pulled her into a tight hug wishing that he could squeeze all of her broken pieces back together. "I'm right here, we are both alright " he murmured into her hair as he stroked her back. She pulled away and he could see her hands shake as she reached for the door, he could almost visibly see the armor and mask fall into place to steel herself for reality. She clenched her hands into fists and they dropped back to her sides before she could reach the door handle, she abruptly turned to him and he felt useless against her pain. 

"I can't...I can't go back out there. Davis in the lab...I can't." Her breath hitched painfully as she kept shaking her head no and trying desperately to get her emotions under control. He reached out, uncurling one fist and holding her hand tight within his.

"Hey, you can do this. I'll be beside you the whole time. Just focus on me, it will be ok." He watched as she nodded once, gripping his hand painfully tight and pushed the door open. He felt her fingers dig into the muscles of his hand as they walked through the corridors to their bunk and carefully watched for any signs of distress but her face was a controlled mask of pleasant politeness and her breathing was suspiciously even, the only sign of what had happened in the closet was her fingers painfully anchoring him to her. Hand in hand they made their way to their room thankfully with no one stopping them.

**Jemma/Fitz**

They both changed into sweatpants and Jemma sheepishly pulled out his well worn black hoodie before snuggling into each other in their delightful new bed. Fitz surrounded her, his smell...she did have to admit that he smelled nice too, his warmth, his touch. Even though she was originally firmly opposed the idea of a nap, she couldn't resist the heavy pull of her eyelids even if she wanted to as Fitz's fingers traced light patterns along her arms. 

Fitz couldn't shut down his mind, his fingers trailed up and down his favorite black hoodie, remembering fondly the night Jemma "borrowed" it late one night while they were studying. She was cold, she was always cold, she really did have poor circulation he mused as her icy feet were currently tucked in between his calves. He had disappeared to find more snacks for what had definitely turned into an all nighter only to return to find his favorite hoodie with the strings at the hood dented with his distracted teeth marks, being worn by his favorite person. He embarrassingly prayed that she did not notice the gnawed strings. He later found out that not only had she noticed, it was one of the reasons she couldn't bring herself to gave it back. He tried shutting his eyes and clearing his mind but there were so many questions racing through his brain and no time for answers. What happened to Yoyo's arms? Something is different about Daisy but he can't figure it out. Why did Mack become director? Did Jemma have anything come from the fear dimension? And Deke, there are so many things there, he doesn't even know where to start. He mentioned seeing his mother manifested from the fear dimension, was that their daughter? Did they have a daughter? So many different emotions warred in his chest. They needed a vacation and new jobs. He reached over and set Jemma's phone alarm and slowly drifted off. 

Fitz watched frozen in horror at the scene he was pulled into. This was a nightmare. His? Hers? He knew it had to be hers, he could feel every pulse of fear and heartbreak ripping through him as he watched the two of them fight on the floor. He watched helplessly as a shaking Simmons, covered in his own blood, stabbed his likeness over and over again until his mechanical insides were revealed. This wasn't a nightmare he realized, this was a memory. Or was it? Chills turned him to ice when a familiar suited figure sidled up behind a sobbing Jemma whispering unheard taunts in her ear. The LMD morphed before his eyes into her dead husband, the wedding ring he currently wore glinting at him, no one had yet noticed his arrival into this, and he couldn't move or make a sound. He was forced to do nothing as Jemma crawled over to his lifeless body, his blood still on her hands as Leopold stood over her laughing. He heard a faint tinkle of musical notes as Jemma's not so friendly id appeared at Leopold's side and let out primal grunt, tilting her head at him and curling her lips in anger and disgust, baring her teeth at him, frozen in place, and then reaching a gnarled hand out to a catatonic Jemma to pull her into her music box. _ You cause pain. _Jemma didn't fight, she didn't even glance back at the three versions of him. She went with her questionable zombie double and left him without a second look. Was this her nightmare or his? Both? Why couldn't he move?

The Doctor made his way towards him and the rush of anger he felt at his immobility and uselessness bubbled over but Leopold batted his concern for Jemma away with the disregard of a passing fruit fly. "You just watched yourself die twice and all you can do is simper on about the woman causing you all of your problems. Honestly, grow a spine." His overly confident posh double clapped him hard on the shoulder and leveled him with a cold stare. "You will never stop being hunted and she is your weakness. Let her go. They will find you both, there will be consequences beyond what your puny mind can comprehend. The hunters are coming." Fitz stared back defiantly into his own eyes. 

"Yeah, they are always coming, what else is new. I'm not leaving my wife behind, we are unstoppable together, so no, don't think I'm listening to my evil twin on this one, thanks." His alter ego rolled his eyes at him and shut him up with a dismissive hand gesture. 

"If you're stupid enough to believe that you are the only ones benefitting from your little retreat down memory lane, well then, you are dumber than you look. I mean, would it kill you to put on a tie?" The Doctor sneered. "What is that incessant noise?" His ever dramatic double pulled out a gun and fired a shot into the beeping distance, jolting Fitz awake. The spot where Jemma was tucked underneath his arm was empty and cold and he heard no movement from adjoining bathroom. Guess they weren't talking about it, then. He got up, showered and changed, going through the sequence of events in their dreams, nightmares? Whatever that was. He was worryingly coming to the same conclusion their subconscious already reached. Now, he just needed to get Jemma to talk about it with him and figure out how to stop a bunch of Chronicom hunters from stealing their brains and forcing them to alter time and bring back their entire planet. Easy. No problem, just add it to the list, then. 


	4. From the Ashes

Fitz walks hurriedly to the lab hoping to find his wife, why did he feel like he spent most of his life looking for her? Scrubbing his eyes trying to rid his mind of Jemma's nightmare playing in flashes behind his eyes, he focuses on the problem at hand. His eyes quickly scan the room for Jemma and he relaxes when he sees her huddled together with Deke in front of a computer. Her hair loose around her face, long sleeves pulled over her hands as the pair went back and forth about something on the screen. He watched fondly as Jemma glared at a comment he made. They turned towards each other, speaking softly about something that he couldn't hear and he could tell she was exhausted from across the room. Deke placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. Jemma closed her eyes for a moment leaning her head against his shoulder. Fitz was overcome with a rush of gratitude for that irritating man. He was family and he could clearly see the love for Jemma in that familiar little hand gesture that said so much. A gesture that said they were here and they saw them, that they were loved. He waited until the moment was over and then shuffled over, feet dragging against the hard floor, announcing his presence. He tugged the one sleeve of Jemma's black long sleeved shirt up, finding her hand and tangled his fingers with hers. She squeezed his fingers and then pulled away from him, turning back to Deke with another idea, just to be shot down. He took the hint, later. He jumped in with his own thoughts, ignoring the urgent need to talk about last night, as they began bouncing ideas between the three of them. 

Jemma has been brushing him off all day. If it didn't pertain to Izel she immediately shut down and he was nearing the end of his rope. 

"What do I have to do to get you to talk to me!? "Knock you unconscious?" He yelled. Fitz's face fell as Jemma recoiled from what he thought was a harmless joke and he knew immediately that he was missing something from the fleeting glimpse of fear that passed over her face. 

"Wouldn't be the first time you made decisions for someone else" She sniped back, venom in her voice and her body seemed poised to attack as if he would actually ever hurt a single hair on her head. Anger and frustration bubbling over he decided that it was probably best that he left her alone. He didn't even know what they were fighting about and for once he wasn't going to let his temper get the better of him. "Find me when you're willing to talk, yeah?" He spoke gruffly turning his back on the person who was supposed to have his and rushed out nearly barrelling into Daisy. He mumbled a quick apology, red faced and hunched in on himself still confused as to what he did wrong to deserve the cold stare and recoiling in fear from his best friend in the whole universe. 

Daisy walked in the lab to find Jemma sitting at the computer, jaw clenched, back ramrod straight, eyes staring into nothing. 

"Simmons?" She saw the muscle in her jaw jump as she clenched her teeth harder. "Simmons, what the hell just happened? I did not go galaxy hopping for a year just so that you two can get a divorce before you're even technically married. You are going to get a real wedding and more importantly I will get the maid of honor dress I deserve. So out with it."

"It's this psychic link. There's no privacy, and I love him but we both have a lot of trauma and sometimes it's too much. Right now, I need to focus and I can't do all of this" she waved her hand frantically around her head and then towards the door where Fitz exited. "I need space to think. I know I should have handled it better but he wouldn't back off."

"Ya think?"

"You try spending every minute awake and sleeping with someone and not get at least a little snippy. "

"Simmons, I know you want to compartmentalize this, but I'm not sure that's going to work. I’m fairly positive you can’t just put Fitz in a box and ignore him, it’s just really not cool. Maybe you need to work out some sort of balance, I don't really know how it works but I'm sure you nerds could figure it out. Pushing him away is not going to do anyone any good. Especially when you won't even explain anything to him." Jemma let out an exasperated sigh and thumped her head on the keyboard. 

"I know. I really need a minute to myself to think and I will find him."

"How about I go find him and you continue doing...that?" Daisy gestured to her friend face down on the keyboard. Daisy walked out searching for Fitz, finding him absentmindedly watching the video monitors of Sarge. 

"Hey." Fitz jumped at the sound, offering a tense smile and a half shrug as he turned back to the monitor. "Look, Simmons just needs space for a minute but if you want, I can try to fill in some blanks. I know you have a lot of questions. You missed a lot."

"Yeah, that's an understatement." Fitz scoffed turning back towards his friend. "I have a list." 

"Of course you do. Let's hear them."

"Do you want the easy ones first or the hard ones?”

“Pfff, easy, obviously.”

“Why aren't you Director?" Fitz started attempting to avoid the landmines he knew he was going to have to get to at some point. Like Jemma's comment from earlier. 

"That’s the easy question? Alright, then. There was a vote. I didn't win." She shrugged it off flippantly, there was obviously much more to it than that. 

"What happened to Yoyo's arms?"

"Oh, these are fun. Someone cut them off. That's why she wasn't at your wedding. The other you made those sweet ass robot arms she's got now."

"Huh."

"What did Jemma mean that this wasn't the first time I made decisions for someone else? Why did you flinch away from me earlier and she looked scared of me. I wouldn't hurt anyone. I don't understand. What happened?" He heard Daisy suck in a breath and move closer to him grabbing one of his fidgeting hands. 

"Fitz. I need you to understand a few things before I tell you what happened. Ok?" He nodded slowly, wary of what she needed to say. "We were all pushing our breaking points. Coulson was dying. There was a loop of the end of the world that we couldn't break. We all had to make hard decisions. We all did what had to be done." Her hand not holding his drifted up to her neck, fingers tracing along a faint scar. "I thought it was my powers that would destroy Earth so I kept this implant in my neck from the Kree to disable my powers. No powers, no end of the world, right? It was my choice to keep it in. But we needed my powers for something, it was the only way, but I refused. You were the only one who understood that at the time. So you made a choice. You had a mental snap, I think, from the pressure and lack of sleep and you know, SHIELD in general, probably. You never told anyone about hearing the Doctor or what happened to you in prison. You broke Fitz. You cut the inhibitor out of my neck and forced me to use my powers again." She could feel his hand shaking and him trying to pull away, his face horrified, she gripped his hand tighter. "The team was fractured. Fitz, I hated you." A sob caught in her throat, squeezing her eyes shut against the tears. "I hated you and you died and it killed me." Fitz hunched in on himself, crying, still trying to pull away from Daisy's grip. "You were my family, you accepted me when I didn't anyone would, and I hated that I hated you, that I was afraid of you. And then you died. I didn't think my heart could break anymore. Because I was so mad at you for dying before I got to the point where I understood enough to forgive you. So I went with Jemma. I watched her turn to stone, have panic attacks in closets and frantically chop off her hair because it was getting in her way. I was there for her every day you couldn't be because we are a family and I knew there was no other outcome but finding you. I forgive you, Fitz. Please look at me."

Fitz closed his eyes and shook his head. He didn't deserve her forgiveness, he didn't deserve to be here. Daisy reaches over squeezing his shoulder, sending a vibration to his core, shocking him into opening his eyes to gape at her. She smirked, "Everything is good now. I have a battle scar, purple hair and my friend back so please don't be stupid about this." 

"I'm a bad person. I hurt you. I can't-how could you even look at me?” His mind sifting through their interactions since his return searching for signs of discomfort or anger and quickly landed on the flinch and too tight smile, he specifically noted it to ask Jemma...oh god, when I touched you-" His eyes were transfixed on the raised line on neck, his hands shaking badly. He jerked away from Daisy, retching into the closest bin and ran from the room desperate to escape the now undeniable truth of what he knew all along. 

The team could not find Fitz anywhere and they had no resources to spare to search for him with the Director and Yoyo gone and an attack on Earth imminent. Jemma kept searching while Deke worked on the prototype for the bracelet that team FitzSimmons came up with but he was nowhere to be found. For the first time since she reunited with Fitz she was going to sleep alone. She should have talked to him instead of trying to put him inside a little box to be dealt with later. She crawled into her empty bed, angry with herself for not being better at everything but she also so mad at him. He wasn't supposed to leave her behind, not after everything. A tear escaped into her pillow, she was so stupid. The dam broke and she quietly heaved sobs into her pillow.

Fitz found a spot within the base that seemed unlikely that people would come looking for him there. It seemed to be a holding cell of some sort, it looked like it had been used at some point but it didn’t matter to him, he needed to be alone. His brain flipped through nightmares of the Doctor, holding friends at knife point and Jemma recoiling away from him. He thought about Mack and Yoyo stuck somewhere with Izel, Izel’s ability to always be three steps ahead of them, Sarge wearing the face of someone they loved so dearly and his growing power, Chronicoms and the destruction they could do with the information they had from them. Around and around he went. A continuous loop of chaos drove him pacing the small holding cell he was hiding himself away in. He needed out of this cycle of endless horrors and stress before he cracked. There was a blanket folded up on a cot in the corner and he wondered who was held in here and what had they done. He thought of his previous self forcibly removing a device from inside Daisy's body and dry heaved into the wastebasket in the corner of the room, wincing at the rancid taste in his mouth. He curled up on the cot wishing he could run from everything but he couldn't hurt Jemma like that. He was fairly certain she would not come out the other side in one piece if he made the choice to leave her behind, no matter how well intentioned. He would not be responsible for breaking her heart again if he could help it.  _ All my damage comes from you.  _ Her voice echoed in his mind, no, he was staying but he needed time to process this part of himself that was capable of so much darkness. He closed his eyes and let his mind drift from problem to problem wondering how they were ever going to get through it and if they did, would they ever be able to walk away? 

Fitz woke up in their shared apartment that they loved so much with its exposed brick and breakfast nook to Jemma slapping his arm angrily. 

"Where the hell have you been?"

"Jemma, you have to understand, I needed time. What I did-you should have left me dead. Why didn't you let me rot in space? I'm not worth saving, Jemma." A dark look passed over Jemma's face and he almost missed the swirling emotions that usually came with being inside each other's heads, mercifully he could only feel his own self loathing and utter contempt. Although, at the moment, it was probably for the best. He was afraid of feeling whatever it was that passed over her face, he didn't think he could bare feeling her fear or disgust of him.

"Fitz-" she grabbed hold of his hand firmly, threading her fingers through his and squeezing tight. "I understood. I didn't like it but I never once doubted-just look." She pulled him from their bed through a door and he froze as he realized he was now in the holding cell that he was currently sleeping in. Jemma was talking to him through the reinforced window, Yoyo by her side, talking about being invincible. 

_ Fitz, I know you feel like you're battling something inside you, but I trust you. Do you trust me? _

_ Yeah, why? _

_ Because I'm going to get you out and we're going to go after this thing. _

Jemma made her way to Fitz inside the holding cell, both moving to sit on the cot in the corner of the small room. Jemma turned to face Fitz on the cot, forcing Fitz to do the same, grabbing his hands she willed him to look her in the eyes "Fitz, I need you to listen to me. It's me and you. It doesn't matter what you do or how much we push each other away or try to compartmentalize, Every minute of every day. At the bottom of the ocean, in alternate realities, to different planets. I've been beside you the whole damn time and I'm not going anywhere. It's us, together or not at all." Fitz gripped her fingers tighter, his eyes shining with unshed tears, Jemma could always find him even when he lost himself. "We all had to make impossible decisions, you were the only person willing to do what needed to be done." She put her hand up, stopping his immediate protests. "Should it have been approached differently, yes. But at the time, it was the only way and you paid a steep price for being the only one to see it. It cost you your family and it wasn't until your death that you earned their forgiveness. But I was never for a second part of that price. I'm with you until the very end because I know your heart better than any person in this galaxy and I know you are a good man." Fitz pulled her to him and kissed her fiercely, molding his body to her curves, fingers clutching desperately. 

"God, I love you so much." He leaned his forehead against hers, breathing her air and closing eyes, relishing her hands reaching up and caressing the sides of his face.

“I love you, so much” The emotion he could hear in her voice nearly brought him to tears, if he could spend every day just being loved by her, that would be enough. 

"I'm sorry I ran, I just needed to process all of this-'" he gestured to his head and sat down heavily at the little table in the holding cell. Jemma sat down with him getting deja vous about telling Fitz about Deke being their grandson in this exact spot. She smiled at the memory and moved closer to her husband. 

"And I'm sorry for shutting down and pushing you away instead of just telling you that I needed some space. I know you wanted to talk about the nightmares but I can't, not yet. I don't know if I'll ever be able to about some of the things you saw. It's hard not being able to hide anything in here" She tapped the side of her head and shrugged, "But honestly, I'm not complaining, I like having you in here mostly, its nice, also very handy. You never said where you were."

"I'm here, actually" Fitz gestured to the room they were currently in, “It looked like it hadn't been used and no one seems to go near it so it seemed as good as place as any to hide."

"Yeah, the last time we were all in that room, I nearly gave you a heart attack, I broke you out and Yoyo locked Mack in. It doesn't exactly hold fond memories for anyone." 

"Oh. Do I want to know what you-"

"Best not, no." Fitz smiled at her shameless expression and had to laugh at the image of her tricking Mack and breaking him out of jail. He leaned down and kissed her lightly, he could feel her lips turning up into a smile.

"What?" She shook her head, laughing at his amusement. 

"Oh nothing, absolutely nothing." He didn't need to know what she did, all water under the bridge, really. "Deke is working on the prototype for the bracelet that's going to stop Izel from playing us like Sims."

"Yeah, we were working out some kinks earlier but he took it and ran. He's quite good once he actually focuses"

"Yeah, he reminds me a lot of you." Fitz scrunched his nose at that.

"Be nice. He's family."

"He's ok, I guess. He makes sure that you're alright, I like that. But he follows us around like a puppy and he never stops talking. But yeah, he's family." Jemma smiled brightly, hopeful that this time around Deke and Fitz would be a little less rocky. "Jemma we do need to talk about part of your nightmare. Or least something the Doctor said to me. I can't stop thinking about the Chronicoms and the mind prison. They had access to everything inside both of our heads. What if they still have that information? They wanted us to save their entire planet, I can't imagine that they just stopped because we got away. They are hunters. That one guy was hunting me across the galaxy and I had no idea. They want their planet back, at any cost. We can't wait for them to find us Jems, could you imagine what they could do with SHIELD resources and our brains?"

"So we come up with a plan, we hunt them before they have the chance to get to us. You could reach out to Enoch. I'm sure he could help us figure out their location. We have to catch them by surprise and if they have our minds, they know how we think so we have to think outside the box. We have to find a way to get that from them or corrupt their data."

"Like a computer virus of sorts? Yeah, I can do that"

"And we have to finish what we started in the mind prison in case we fail and they find us. I'm not losing you again." 

"Time travel?" Fitz questioned and Jemma nodded succinctly.

"All of time and space, my dear." 

"Unstoppable together?" Fitz held out his hand, wiggling his fingers in invitation.

"Unstoppable together. Let's get to work." Jemma confirmed, grabbing his hand They rapidly started bouncing ideas off each until Jemma's alarm blared and she was back in her bed by herself. She threw back her blanket, grabbed her trusty black hoodie and threw on the first pair of shoes she could find, running out of the room twisting and turning down the halls and stairs until she got to the holding cell that once kept Fitz imprisoned, that he now locked himself in. She flung open the door, no code keeping her from him this time, and shook him awake abruptly. He jolted awake, immediately jumping from his cot, relaxing when he realized that it was just Jemma responsible for his rude wake up call. He pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her tightly, feeling calmer in her presence. He noted she was wearing one of his undershirts along with his stolen black hoodie and sweatpants paired with her work shoes and no socks. Her hair was still messy from sleep and squeezed her a little bit tighter before letting go. He folded the blanket back up on the cot and straightened his slept in clothes from yesterday as best he could.

"I looked for you all day yesterday. I just needed to make sure that you were alright." She traced her fingers down his shirt sleeve. 

" I'm not yet, but I will be. It's a lot. But we have work to do so I'll deal with, I promise." He leaned over to press a lingering kiss to her forehead and they walked back to their room hand in hand to get ready for the day. 


	5. And We Run

Fitz reaches out to Enoch and he confirms their worst fears. The Chronicoms are coming for them. Making a snap decision, they run. Deke is more than capable of handling the tech so they pull him aside and tell him everything. Despite Fitz's reservations, they trust him with everything. They give him the only way they will be able to be reached, world ending apocalypse emergencies only. No one can know where they are. Deke stands a little taller, squaring his shoulders knowing that his grandparents are not only trusting him with their lives but they're only leaving because they believe that he can complete the rest of the mission for them. They trust him with their team's lives and he refuses to let them down. Fitz and Simmons quickly run to their room and within minutes throw a few things in a suitcase and are ready to go. They find Enoch in the hallway and in a flash of light they are gone. 

They found themselves facing an endless ocean and surrounded by sand and a daunting forest of trees at their backs. The air was warm and balmy, it was almost paradise. Jemma stared at the lapping waves lost in time for a moment, she hasn't seen the ocean since it almost killed them. She could hear Fitz's unsteady footsteps in the sand as he made his way over to her side and took her hand. Her gaze broke away from the water to study his expression for any sign of fear but his face was calm and thoughtful. It seemed like a lifetime ago. Her voice cut through the silence to address Enoch.   
"What is this place?"  
"Best you both don't know, actually. I've been preparing since I parted with you. Follow me." Fitz grabbed their bag and they started off towards the trees. They walked until the trees parted way to a breathtaking waterfall. The three had been walking in a line but at the sight Fitz slowed his pace to walk in step with Jemma.   
"Well, this is quite the honeymoon." Jemma smiled warmly at him.  
"Bit of an upgrade from our last one. Somehow still involves evil robots but I'll take it." Fitz laughed. He felt a little bit guilty but he already felt more like himself just being out of the pressure cooker of SHIELD.   
"We can do this, right Jemma? It's just. It's time travel. It's a bit- it's TIME travel. " He deadpanned.  
"We've solved impossible problems before."   
"Yeah, but it's-" he scrubs his hand over his face. "Not to put too fine a point on it but you want us to solve time travel. Shall we build a blue police box to travel in as well? I just-it breaks the laws of physics and I know that it's possible because I'm here but honestly I'm not even too sure where to start." Jemma patted his arm and picked up their pace along the now rocky terrain. She was sweating and her bangs were stuck to her forehead at odd angles.   
"We'll figure it out. We always do." Fitz nodded, going quiet, focusing on his steps and keeping up with Enoch. He hated being hot and his shirt was starting to stick to his back and the bag was heavy. After twenty minutes of hiking in their work clothes Fitz was ready to call it, he wasn't going to make it, it was too hot and he was definitely wearing the wrong shoes. Jemma tugged on his hand, unfazed, knowing that he hated this sort of thing, she always knew. "How about we trade for a little bit? It's both of our stuff in that thing." He was about to protest but he knew any misguided chivalrous notions would undoubtedly lead to a very long Jemma lecture, besides they always shared the load, there is absolutely no reason to object to her carrying the bag for a while, so he offered it to her, tangling hot clammy fingers. Jemma squeezed his arm lightly and then continued on. He wiped the sweat out of his eyes with the back of his shirt sleeve, giving her a small smile and continued following, trying his hardest to keep his complaints to himself because at least they were together.

Enoch finally came to a stop several feet ahead of them in front of a small villa the color of the surrounding sand nestled into the trees, Fitz could see a balcony overlooking the waves and rubbed his eyes waiting for the mirage to disappear.  
"Enoch-what is this place? How...this can't be wear we're staying"  
"Like I said, I have been preparing. There are several rules that you must abide by while we are here. This place is outside of time, you cannot have any contact with anyone while you are here, absolutely no one can know about this place, and Fitz you must not do that thing you do with your voice when you're angry, best friend or not it does not help the situation and it also irritates me. We will be here together until we solve the puzzle of time, I have found the most advanced scientific materials to aid us but frankly it will be down to the two of you. I fear it will not be safe for any of us if we leave this island unsuccessful."  
Jemma nods and makes her way closer to their new home, pushing her bangs out of face, ready to get to work. Fitz picks up the bag she set down and they follow her, their pace much slower. Jemma pushes open the front door to a completely open living room and kitchen, light wood spanning the entire floor and reinforced windows filling the room with bright sunlight. There was a door right off the small, brightly colored kitchen she could tell led to the balcony she saw from the beach. It wasn't massive by any means but she would be happy here, she had Fitz and it wasn't permanent. She felt a pang of sadness for leaving the team behind again but judging by what Enoch said this was life and death. There was a set of squat brown stairs that meandered their way to the second floor where there were airy two bedrooms with comfortable looking queen sized beds, one covered in a cerulean blue blanket and the other in a deep green. There were two bathrooms both of which had soaking tubs that had Jemma immediately making plans. She wandered back down the stairs hearing the door open to rejoin the guys, trailing her fingers along the wood grain in the handrail enjoying the texture. She smiled at Fitz brightly, excited to explore with him all of the things this place had to offer.   
"I would like to show you the most important aspect of this house before we do anything else." Enoch moved to a door that blended in seamlessly with the ship lap that ran horizontally along the walls. He swiped a thumb along a panel that beeped and lit up green and the door clicked open to a gleaming state of the art lab. That is why the house looked so big on the outside despite the average sized living space they entered. "This is the lab where we should have everything we need for our problems. We are completely undetectable on this island, as you would say we are 'off the grid'. There are security measures throughout the island to alert us if anyone else should enter the premises. As you saw I included extra precautions to the lab to protect our work, I will be needing both of your right thumbs, if you would." Enoch swiftly reached for Jemma's hand and quickly pressed her thumb to the finger pad and then Fitz's each time waiting for a series of beeps and programming each fingerprint into the security system. Fitz and Simmons passed amused glances to each while gesturing excitedly to their new equipment. Fitz let out a very high pitched squeal of excitement upon seeing a new holotable in the middle of the room, bouncing on his toes impatiently waiting for Enoch to release him so he could go to it.   
"Jemma! Look at this perfect little baby, she is absolutely beautiful! He was hugging the sides and talking softly to his new baby. Jemma raised her eyebrows and laughed, she missed this side of Fitz, and she couldn't wait to work together in their own lab again. She watched in absolute utter amusement as Fitz straightened and walked over to Enoch and gave him a tight hug, proclaiming him the absolute best friend, aside from his wife, of course. Enoch looked quite proud of himself and just a tad smug, but Fitz was fairly positive that was just his face.

Enoch left them to familiarize themselves with their new lab and the two worked in synchronized silence, humming with excitement as they set up their respective sides how they like, like they've done countless times before and will no doubt do countless times again. They spent hours testing equipment, setting up computers, every once in a while turning to each other to show them something particularly spectacular, Enoch really out did himself this time. When they eventually became too hungry and tired to keep working they headed back to the kitchen to find it fully stocked with island fruits and fish plus canned and frozen items. They made quick dinners for themselves and ate out on the balcony, settling themselves in a set of bright yellow Adirondack chairs, enjoying the warm sea breeze and the sound of the waves. 

They cleaned up their dishes, Fitz trying his hardest to distract her with teasing touches along her back, tickling her side in an effort to break her focus away from efficiently cleaning the kitchen, back to him. He smiled playfully at her when she swatted him away with the dish towel, "Fitz, the faster we clean up the kitchen the faster we can shower and enjoy that delightful looking bed I saw upstairs, so if you would stop trying to get me to leave a mess behind, which you know I'm completely incapable of, you could actually help and we will be done faster." Fitz immediately plucked the dish rag from her hand and began wordlessly wiping down the counters, throwing the rag in the sink, quickly drying the dishes, most definitely not up to Jemma's standards and placed them back in their cabinets. He grabbed her hand and poignantly ignored her smug laughter, as he led her to the open door at the top of the landing, Enoch having already claimed his bedroom and closed the door. The room was bright and airy with more shiplap walls and light wood floors, with only a queen sized bed and a dresser placed along the wall next to the door. There were floor to ceiling windows spanning one wall leaving them with a breathtaking view of the ocean. There was one door leading to a small closet and another one leading to their adjoining bathroom with the prized soaker tub. Jemma glanced around the room as Fitz explored their new living space and realized that they left their bag downstairs, she retrieved the bag from next to the front door and carried it up to their room, quickly unpacking the contents. She refolded their clothes and set them in their respective drawers and placed the two pictures she grabbed on top of the dresser. The first was one of her favorites, it survived so much and it was so innocuous, just a young Fitz giving her smiling younger self bunny ears and the other frame contained an old picture of the team. Her family. They would have to get a picture with Deke, you know when the world wasn't ending, she thought to herself. She felt Fitz's arms wrap around her waist as he pulled her toward the bathroom, she heard the water running and realized she hadn't even noticed that he went into the bathroom she was so engrossed in her task. She turned in his arms and placed a scorching kiss to his mouth. She loved every single molecule of this man. Her tongue tangled with his as they moved backwards to the bathroom, removing clothes and pressing lingering kisses to exposed skin. They made their way into the shower and then bed, happy and content, for the first time in years.

They quickly developed a routine on the island that balanced basking in the sun, enjoying each other's company, and working diligently on the problem they've been tasked with. They worked side by side, leaning into each space, reaching over each other to adjust something on the holotable, bickering over potential solutions, all while being incandescently happy that they were both safe and able to work together, it was something that they forgot they could be. They could kiss and linger and breathe and there would be no heartbreaking consequences. They were learning how to be them again, and more importantly, they were healing as individuals. They lived inside each other's heads as they slept, sometimes they visited past memories that they thought might help with the project, sometimes they had nightmares that they couldn't talk about yet, and most of the time they just walked the years of memories that spanned between them and loved each other harder because of them. 

They were close to a break through, she could feel it. Jemma laid down on the chaise lounge on the balcony, the sound of the waves lulling her to sleep, her eyes growing heavy and drifting shut, the cup of rapidly cooling tea in her hands was set down and promptly forgotten as she napped instead. They were right there, they just needed to push, she thought as her mind swirled with ideas even as she drifted off. She was so tired lately, Fitz keeps telling her to ease off and take a break, the work isn't going anywhere but she knew they were close, she couldn't make herself stop. There was a good chance that their friends were in serious trouble. She didn't tell Fitz yet but she got a message from Deke on their emergency device, it was a text with SOS coordinates. She knew she couldn't do anything about it and it drove her crazy, the only thing that she could do is finish what they started here and then they would be able to go back and help the team. So she pushed herself harder. Jemma had taken to falling asleep in random spots around the house leaving Fitz to find her. Covering her with a blanket and continuing working himself or curling himself around her only to wake up in their beloved state of the art bus lab in her dream, still working with Jemma, she couldn't turn her brain off. He found himself trying to avoid going to sleep at the time as her so that his brain could rest. He didn't know why she suddenly became obsessive with their work but he needed to find a way to get her to take a break, she was going to burn herself out and this was a marathon not a sprint despite what Jemma seems to think. They weren't going to break the laws of the universe in the span of weeks or even a month, they were good but they weren't that good. They needed to be methodical and careful, there were so many ways that this could go wrong and he needed her to pump the brakes.

Fitz decided after not being able to convince her to leave the lab for 15 days and counting, enough was enough. Jemma was going leave the lab even if he had to physically carry her outside. He packed a picnic to take to the beach and got out a blanket, umbrella and beach chairs for the two of them. He carried everything out to a suitable spot along the ocean and set everything up before walking back to the house to drag Jemma from the lab for a few hours. 

It took him longer than he thought it would to convince his wife that the world wouldn't end if she stopped working for a few hours. So they were finally perched on their beach chairs in their swimsuits, lathered in sunscreen, both only the vaguest touch darker than when they first arrived but still amazingly blindingly pasty. Neither one of them were going to be described as sunkissed anytime soon. Jemma opened her mouth to start talking about what she was working on and to ask where Fitz was on his part of the experiment, when she abruptly stopped remembering his rule, absolutely no work talk for at least one hour. He raised his eyebrows in question and she just shook her head. She knew he wouldn't mind if it was important but he was also right, she was burning herself out. She needed to detox and stop thinking about work for just a little bit and then she could come back with fresh-well freshish eyes. She still hasn't told him about the team's SOS and now that she waited so long she wasn't sure how to start that conversation, hey you know how I've been working like an insane person for the last few weeks? Yeah, it because the team is most likely grave danger and we can't do anything about it. Yeah, probably not in that specific way. She watched through her sunglasses as he meandered down to the water, dipping his toes in, and looking back up at her smiling when he caught her staring at him. She enjoyed the view, him in his gray swim trunks slung low on his hips, plus they did nice things to his bum. His shoulders were looking quite broad and his arms were nicely defined, he must be doing those push ups still, he bent over to pick something up and she was very grateful he forced her to take a break, it was a beautiful day. He walked back over to her, holding something out in his hand, smiling widely. She held out her hand and he dumped a bright seashell in her palm and then reached for her pulling her out of her seat. She carefully placed the pretty little shell on the arm of her chair and let Fitz lead her to the water. She still hasn't gone in. Fitz grabbed her hand, intertwining their fingers tightly, "Jemma, you love the ocean. It will be ok, see?" Fitz placed his own feet into the water, watching the waves and sand cover his feet.   
"Yeah, I stopped loving the ocean after it almost took you away from me. Swimming for our lives from the bottom of it tends to suck the fun right out of it."  
"One step, please? You won't regret it." He did the thing with his eyes that is nearly impossible to resist and his thumb traced comforting circles along her wrist and before she knew her feet were in the ocean again. She took a deep breath and realized that she was fine and Fitz was fine. The ocean wasn't going to kill them just because they were standing ankle deep in it, it didn't have a ledger to even out, it was just water. She didn't think that she would ever find herself going for a casual swim but she could do this. She smiled brightly, he's given her so many things and he doesn't even realize how utterly perfect he is. She kicked the water up towards him, laughing loudly as he screamed in shock at the cold water suddenly assaulting his warm exposed skin. He immediately leaned down splashing her in revenge until they were chasing each other across the beach kicking up sand and water as they went. Hours later, the sun was setting so they packed up their things and headed back up to the house, stopping in the back to hose everything and each other off, laughing hysterically as they attacked each other with the spray rather than attempting to remove sand. "I have sand in places they absolutely should not be, I need a shower, Fitz, you coming?" Fitz dropped the chairs he was attempting to put away in the storage shed immediately and left them on the ground following his bikini clad wife up the stairs because he had priorities and also sand in unfortunate places. 

The next morning Jemma was awake before the sun rose so she slipped on Fitz's tshirt and a pair of shorts and quietly tiptoed down the stairs making two cups of tea. She set them on the counter and went to retrieve her soon to be very grumpy husband from their bed. There was something still inherently magical about watching the sunrise to her. Dragging Fitz out of bed and getting him out to the balcony took quite a bit of needling and a lot of grumbling from a very sleepy Fitz. But he was awake, mostly. He lounged on the yellow Adirondack chair with his tea and watched Jemma's profile as the sun began making it's way across the sky, painting beautiful colors across the ocean, he could physically see the joy coming off of her and he wished he brought his phone so that he capture this moment, because she looked radiant, surrounded by joy and the first peels of morning sunlight. She was absolutely perfect. He smiled to himself, he would wake up for a million sunrises to see this. They watched in silence and he thought about that first sunrise they watched together, how hopeful they were. And now, they were so close to having it all, everything they dreamed of but were too afraid to talk about, he could see it, the kids, the cottage, the two of them laughing and bickering a lifetime together, it was there's for the taking, this was their last thing. When the sun cleared the horizon, Jemma turned to him taking his empty mug and placed it next hers on the table sitting between their chairs. "So I don't know how to start. I know that I should have told you this when I learned about it but then I waited too long and then I didn't know how to bring it up but now here we are." Fitz blinked rapidly his brain trying desperately to catch up to Jemma.  
"I'm sorry, what's happening right now?"


	6. Sunrise

"Fitz, I don't know where to start, really" his heart clenched watching her take a shaky breath as she gave him a small, unsure smile.

"I'm pregnant." She blurted out abruptly, intently watching his face for her news to sink in. Fitz's face went slack, his eyes comically wide, taking a beat to process the fact that they created an entire human, they created something magnificent, wherever it was that they were. Jemma beamed as she watched him go from dumbfounded to absolute unadulterated joy in the span of 6 seconds. 

"How, what, when? -No, wait, don't answer any of those" she let out a peel of laughter and his heart tripled in size. He pulled her close to him and hugged her tight, burying his face in her shoulder. He really doesn't understand how he could possibly love this woman anymore. Pregnant. They were having a baby. On an island, in the middle of a time traveling road circus debacle, because of course they were. Jemma was completely content standing in Fitz's arms for the time being. She knew he would be happy about the news, if not slightly freaked out by the circumstances. She was afraid he would get overprotective and they really didn't have the luxury of playing it safe at the moment. He tilted his face down, lips seeking hers in a slow, soul burning kiss that set her heart on fire. He peppered her face with small kisses and she didn't think it could get any better than this.

Jemma had a plan. Of course, she had a plan. Fitz did not like this plan, not one bit. Jemma had won, of course. Enoch sided with his wife, the traitor. The plan was meticulous, it was Jemma's after all, there were phases and steps and color coded binders. Step 1. Remove the threat of the Chronicom hunters. Step 2. Return to SHIELD to find the exact location time and date to extract their friends Step 3. Save their friends from probable explosion Step 4. Cottage in Perthshire. There were a lot of other bits, a's, b's, roman numerals etc. but that was basically the crux of it. Jemma and Enoch worked loudly across the room together, constantly arguing, they were working on a virus that could disable the threat of the Chronicoms, essentially rebooting them with a single shot, in theory, and erasing the threat all together. Fitz was currently working on a tiny little device the size of a usb drive that would essentially transport a computer like virus to the cerebral fusion machine to corrupt the data stolen from inside their heads. There were only two people in this universe who were allowed to have access to that information and they were getting their lives back. Fitz was also working on creating a shooting mechanism that would shoot out the little spider looking electrodes that would land on a Chronicom, emit several electrical waves and the needle legs would dispense the actual virus that will essentially wipe their entire system. For the first time in seven months they were leaving the island. This wasn't quite goodbye though, this was only phase one.

**Step 1.**

Aboard their own ship, Enoch tracked the Chronicom ship from a distance. The three were each occupied with their own tasks, each hoping that everything goes smoothly and that they would be in and out quickly, everything they did was a calculated risk now. The element of surprise was pretty much their only advantage over the relentless hunters. 

They grab on to each other, thankfully Enoch has since mastered how to use the transport rings, and they were in, ready or not. They swiftly go through shooting the one or two Chronicoms they come across, easily disabling them. They continue picking them off quietly until they reach the center of the ship where their arrival was unceremoniously announced with a loud alarm and they were swarmed. Failure was not an option. Fitz sees the machine that trapped them inside the mind prison and worked his way towards it with the small metallic device he made to corrupt it in hand. He feels Jemma behind him, shoulders squared, as they shoot their Spider Guns in a circle trying to clear a path to the mind prison machine. His brain does funny things when he sees her baby bump still mostly hidden by her black t-shirt. He feels Jemma nudge him to the left, he moves as she covers him. Enoch is next to her, he cannot be hit, if he is hit everything is done. Adrenaline pumping, pops of sound loud in his ears, he clenched his fingers tightly around the device to attach to the machine, he saw Malachi for a split second and registered the pain of heavy impact to the side of his head, his mind blank with confusion. The device fell from his hand before he could process anything, a thick fog swarmed his head and black spots clouded his vision, he realized too late that the hunter crushed his tiny little gadget. There was no way to transmit the virus to corrupt the data, even if they blew it up, their entire brains would still just be there available for download. His head swam. No, no, no, no, no. He sees Jemma crouch in front of him, eyes concerned at his unfocused vision. He assumes Jemma and Enoch handled the rest of the Chronicoms, he would have guessed that she would be a little bit more urgent if that weren't the case. She caresses his cheek softly and smiles at him. 

"I have a backup plan but you're not going to like it. We go back in. What if we unleash the Doctor and my Id? There are a few different variables this time, the baby, the mind link, your concussion-should be fine, I think" He forces himself to focus on her with herculean effort and musters up the energy to show at least some of the disbelief he is currently feeling. 

"Are you insane, you want to let my psycho sadist nazi shadow self out for a play date with 30 years of your suppressed anger and fear and then what, set them loose on the Chronicom databank?" He paused. "That’s not a bad idea actually. Except for wait, they are both homicidal maniacs who tried to kill us! Not to mention the baby, we don't know if this will have any effect on her-I mean look what it did to us!" 

"Don't you think I've considered that? But I can't spend our entire lives and hers in hiding wondering when the next thing is coming for us. I refuse to give our baby that life, Fitz, not if I can do anything about it. And don't you understand, the Doctor and my id were protecting us. That’s not the real Doctor, that’s still part of your brain just like that zombie monster is part of mine. They were both protecting us from the thing that was causing the most pain. Which, inconveniently, happened to be us. But they are still us. I think they would love nothing more than to dismantle something piece by piece that’s threatening them as long as they can keep their hands and mouths off each long enough to do it."

Fitz sighed heavily and nodded in agreement. Jemma held out her hands and helped Fitz off of the floor, holding him steady as he swayed, "Are you alright?"

"Well, no, not really, but I'm not willing to walk away leaving the entirety of our knowledge with a race of aliens that spent the better part of a year hunting us, so yeah, I guess we are doing this" Jemma helped Fitz lay down on the platform and then did the same. Enoch started the machine against his better judgment and waited. 

Fitz and Simmons woke up in the blank white room again, they stood hand in hand together, both summoning with minds, their counterparts. Jemma smiled brightly at the pair who immediately became very interested in each other. "Hi, listen, eyes forward please." They pair gave her a bored, patronizing look but gave her their attention nonetheless. "How would you two like to burn this place to the ground? We need you to destroy this place, nothing left behind, got it?" They both looked very interested suddenly. 

“Have fun! No kissing until you finish...hey! Focus.” Fitz snaps his fingers in front of the pair trying to get their attention. The doctor straightens his tie primly and smirks while Id Jemma lets out a low growl lifting Mack's shotgun ax to her shoulder with a teasing grin as they both turned with matching chaotic, manic smiles to cause general chaos in this fake world. Enoch saw the readings begin to go haywire as the gruesome, dynamic duo began working their magic and he pulled his friends from the cerebral fusion machine. They watched as the readings of the data continued to go crazy. 

"There, one problem solved."

**Step 2.**

They returned to the island, Fitz with a concussion but other than that none worse for wear. They finalized their designs for the upgrades for the Zephyr to make everything work. They planned and tested and redesigned. Jemma's baby bump grew and Fitz was anxious. There were no doctors on this island and as much everyone seemed to forget, Jemma wasn't actually a medical doctor. But like everything else, she planned. Enoch got her the right supplements and supplies. Jemma constantly walked Fitz through everything he needed to do once she went into labor. Enoch knew the plan backwards and forwards, unlike his best friend he was not squeamish, he would not fail baby Fitz-Simmons. They got the essentials for a newborn. They prepared as much as you could living on an isolated island. All they had left to do was wait. Jemma had estimated her due date to the best of her ability and just like her mother she was extraordinarily prompt. After 9 hours of labor, Peggy Anne Fitz-Simmons was born on an undisclosed island on an unknown date and year weighing 6lbs 6oz. She had puffs of white blonde curly hair and sparkling blue eyes. She was perfect. Fitz surreptitiously wiped the tears from his eyes watching Jemma speak softly to the new human that they just created.

Life became a haze of feedings and changing diapers and never sleeping but it was utterly beautiful. The pair worked steadily with their infant curled in the crook of their arms, her eyes wide and curious following the lights of the holotable and her parents volleying voices. She squawked indignantly at having her toes dipped in the cold ocean and time passed quickly as she laughed her contagious baby giggle and her parents clung to every passing second of this unbroken paradise.

Everything was ready. Jemma was tired but she knew her friends needed them. She also knew that one of them had to go and one of them had to stay here for their plan to work and for Peggy. She knew she had to be the one to go but that didn't make it any easier. It would break her heart, again. This was their plan, this was a choice that they were making themselves, so she was leaving them behind. It was the hardest thing she ever had to do but she knew in the long run, this would be the smallest blip in their story. Enoch would teach her the controls of the ship and then she would be gone. She could not contact them and she would not be able come back until the first part of her mission was complete. They had almost two years living in their bubble on this island and now it was back to real life, back to a life without Fitz and now Peggy. She felt hallowed out but she could do this. She was carving her own heart out with a bone knife but she would do whatever it takes. She placed leaving them inside her little box and closed it. At least, they still had their psychic link. 

The day came to say goodbye and she could not stop the tears continuously trickling from her eyes as she held Peggy close, memorizing her baby smell and the curve of her little nose and her grumpy baby noise and squeals of delight, and gummy smile. Fitz held her tightly, his breathing heavy and uneven, his whole body shaking and tight with anxiety of having to lose her again. Peggy let out a cry of discomfort at being squished too tightly between them and they shifted slightly. They were silent, there was nothing left to say, there was nothing to say that would make this any better. 

Jemma returned to SHIELD with little fanfare and few questions asked, it had only been a few months since they ran and from what she could tell, everything was different. There was no sign of her friends or anyone she knew within the organization. She spent her time retrofitting the Zephyr with the changes she and Fitz made until she began noticing that something was deeply wrong. She kept her head down and continued her work but she also kept her guard up and watched. 

Jemma turned a corner in the new SHIELD headquarters, walking to her designated desk to begin work early, not being able to sleep any way. She tried to sleep for a few hours in her empty bunk but it was a useless endeavor. Fitz was either on an opposite sleep cycle or not sleeping because of Peggy but it was too lonely inside her bunk and her head without him so she buried herself in her work. The sooner she could finish, the sooner she could see their faces again. She noticed two agents, heads bent together whispering fiercely before noticing her presence, glaring at her sharply and immediately stopping their conversation. She sighed and continued her beeline to her desk, she would have to do something about this, she supposed. She just needed Fitz to blasted sleep at the same time as her for a few minutes before she started planning something else to add to her problems. She didn't want to possibly prolong her time away without talking to him first. She knew in her gut what was happening, there had been a power vacuum when Mack and the others left, SHIELD was still rebuilding itself with influxes of new recruits and it was vulnerable. Hydra took advantage of that. It was always Hydra, wasn't it? 

She developed a habit of working until she crashed without anyone there to stop her and her only motivation for being there was to leave as soon as possible. It did her no favors, paired with the lack of contact with Fitz, she was generally avoided on even her best days which suited her just fine.She pulled herself from the adjustments on the Zephyr, she was doing mostly in secret now, her eyes heavy and brain foggy with exhaustion as she walked in her quick and efficient stride to her bunk to crash for a few hours. She had given up on being hopeful every night for a glimpse of her fast growing daughter or reassurances from Fitz. Her heart ached to see them again. She needed to shut herself down to be what they needed right now, what SHIELD needed her to be. She took the pins from her new hair style, her fingers unraveling the tight braided buns that kept her hair out of the way, that reminded her of who she was right now. She carded her fingers along her sore scalp and quickly got herself ready for bed and crashed into sleep immediately. 

_ "Where the hell have you been." Fitz crushed her to his chest and held her tightly to him before she could even process where they were. She stifled a cry and clung just as tightly to him, relieved to finally see his face. "I thought we would at least get to see each every night and then our bloody brains took nearly two months. Jemma, are you alright?" She buried her face in his shoulder, nodding and taking ragged breaths.  _

_ "Can I see her?" Fitz's face softened and he pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. He tangled their fingers together and led her to his most recent memory. They walked through the door and they were back inside their bedroom on the island. Fitz was laying in their bed in a pair of shorts, their daughter curled up on his bare chest, blue eyes matching his own, bright with interest as she listened to his voice. Her curly hair, wild and sun bleached as he ran his fingers through the soft curls, telling a story, she realized about her. Her heart clenched listening to him tell her about how she traveled the stars to rescue her daddy. Tears sprang to her eyes as she took in all of the changes since she last held her daughter. She was taller, looking closer to a little person than a squishy, albeit adorable little alien. She clearly favored Fitz in looks, that much was very obvious, she might have her nose, she couldn't tell and her heart shattered into a million pieces because she didn't know. She wasn't there to see her learn all of these new things, to watch her grow and change. She kept her safe inside her for all of those months and what if she didn't remember her when she came back? She couldn't breathe. _

_ "Fitz, I can't do this. This is too hard. I want to come home." Fitz took a shaky breath and held her tight, knowing he would have to be the strong one this time, his eyes glassy but his voice unwavering and comforting as he spoke softly to her. _

_ "I know, Jemma. I know. You will be here before you know it and it will be ok. You know what you have to do and we will be waiting. We are doing alright, Jemma. It's not easy but you know we can't stop now. We can't do that to the team, no matter the cost. It's the final mission Jemma and you're done. You can do this, you are the strongest person I know." His fingers traced the paths of tears along her cheeks, wiping them away, offering her all of the strength he had. He pulled her to another memory of their daughter, it was just a small moment, Fitz working in the lab and Peggy sitting in her walker, smashing her pudgy baby fists on the tray table, content with making noise and babbling to him, answering him, as he thought through his problems out loud, unused to working in the lab alone again. Fitz paced, writing something down before saying something else. Peggy babbled loudly in response and Fitz paused in his notes realizing what she was doing and laughed. "Look at our little genius! You know I miss your mummy, don't you?" He picked her up and hugged her tightly until she protested, reaching for something on Jemma's workbench. He scanned the area for something that Jemma wouldn't murder him for giving their 6 month old daughter and settled on a sturdy looking magnifying glass tucked in the corner of her supplies. He's fairly positive she's never used it but cleaned it quickly and handed it over to their suddenly gleeful child. He placed her back in the walker, flinching slightly as she banged the magnifying glass on the edge of the tray before promptly putting it in her mouth. "Alright, Simmons, you work on figuring that out" he laughed gesturing to the girl licking her new favorite object and babbling a confirmation to him, "I'm going to get back to work and pray Jemma doesn't kill me for this." Jemma smiled wide as she watched the pair go back and forth with each other. Fitz asking their 6 month old baby questions she wasn't even sure she herself could answer and Peggy confidently answering nonsense and proudly smiling, positive she fixed whatever problem she was just asked. She saw herself in that confident grin she gave her dad, self assured that she knew all the answers at 6 months old. They were ok. She could do this. For them. _

_ "Fitz, something is wrong at SHIELD. I think it's Hydra." _

_ "Bloody Hydra, why is it always them? Why can't they just retire to Florida or something like a nice, normal evil, villainous organization?" _

_ "I can stop them but it's going to take time." She sighed sadly but she couldn't ignore them, she was an Agent of SHIELD and she wouldn't turn her back on them. The final mission. "Ok, now that we finally saw each other we can figure this out, sync our schedules. Sleep every 16 hours, even if it's just a quick power nap. It's the only way to ensure that we don't go months without seeing each other again." Fitz nodded in agreement as Jemma laid out her next moves and what she was going to do about the Hydra infiltration. They talked quickly unsure of how much time they had left together until one of them woke up and they were back to harsh reality.  _

Jemma sat up in her bed, Fitz had broken the connection, she had assumed that Peggy had awoken him and she curled herself into a ball and cried as quietly as she could manage. She set her watch alarm to 16 hours and got herself up and ready for the day, pulling on her commanding new clothes and slicking her hair back into it's unforgiving coiffure. She was in no mood today, she was getting back to her family and the only thing standing in her way was a group of traitorous, spineless Nazis, they had no idea what was coming. 

Jemma took her time, the situation demanded patience and so she was. She spent the time she wasn't working on the Zephyr gaining allies and recruiting trustworthy agents. They built themselves up in secret and moved to separate from this corrupt shell of an organization that had defined her life for decades. She became the appointed interim Director and she was ready to end this once and for all.

  
  


**Step 3.**

Jemma walked onto the new and improved Zephyr ready to head to the controls and contact her husband, finally. It was time to go home. She left her second in command in charge of ground missions and they had clear instructions on how to continue. She trusted her new team, they were good. They still had to test everything on the ship, of course, before she was willing to go off into missions traveling through space and time, there were too many risks she wasn't willing to take. There was exactly one person in the entire universe qualified to help her. And she had a baby to see. So she pressed the homing button reinstalled from Enoch's ship to this one, designed to send the ship back to the island. It would also notify them of her upcoming arrival. 

The ship landed with a dull thud and her entire body hummed with excitement as she waited impatiently for the ramp to make its way to the pale sand. She bolted down the ramp and was hit with a rush of disappointment when there was no one in sight. She rushed back up the ramp to grab her bags and made her way to the house. She dropped her stuff off at the front door and was confused when she was again greeted by silence. She was positive Enoch said that they would be notified when she arrived. Her pulse quickened as her brain raced through worst case scenarios. She moved to the balcony to scan the beach for any signs of them when she heard Fitz's voice yelling and a shrill baby scream. Jemma's heart stopped as she leaned over the balcony, ignoring the beauty of the sunset over the ocean, she could see them in the distance down the beach. She sprinted in their direction until she was finally able to see their faces. Her heart stopped. They were right there in front of her solid and real and she couldn't move. She took in the scene in front of her, Fitz in his swim trunks trying his best to pry a fist full of sand from a naked, wailing Peggy. Red faced and wild haired she tried her best to scream protests while still attempting to jam the fist full of sand in her mouth. 

"No, Peggy, no. We don't eat sand. Drop it. Peggy." She arched her back in an effort to remove herself from his grip but he shifted his grasp still holding her hand away from her mouth. She screamed in frustration and continued to thrash and wail at the injustice of not being allowed to eat sand. Fitz glanced up and froze, noticing Jemma for the first time, too preoccupied in their battle of wills. He smiled shyly, suddenly very self conscious of how all of this looked. 

"Uh, welcome home?" He took the opportunity of Peggy being briefly distracted to clear the sand from the vice grip of her fist. He hiked her up to his hip and walked over to her, slightly concerned that she hadn't moved or said anything. "Jemma?" He moved in front of her, wet sandy fingers pulling her to them. She fell into his warm chest, pressing her face to her daughter's soft belly and blowing a raspberry, delighting in the giggles that exploded from the little girl. She felt whole again. 

"Mamamamamamamama" Jemma's eyebrows shot up in shock as she did the math in her head, 10 months, her baby was almost a year old. She took her into her arms carefully mirroring how Fitz had been holding her.

"Hi, baby, I've missed you so, so much." Tears welled in her eyes as Peggy continued babbling excitedly, clinging to her side, completely unphased. 

"Yeah she's a big fan of talking and screaming and the holotable. She's a bit wobbly on her feet but she's almost there. She's very determined. She seems a bit...advanced but it's hard to tell without doctors and tests and all. I haven't really been around any other babies other than her, but she's absolutely top notch, I'd say. Best substitute lab partner yet, definitely miles ahead of Milton. Plus, she's cute." He formed her hand in a fist and bumped it with his, making sound effects that made her laugh. 

"Aw, have I been replaced?" She made a silly face at Peggy and tickled her bare tummy enticing more laughter from the gregarious little baby. Fitz kissed her soundly, "Never. I like the new look, by the way." He leaned over and placed a lingering kiss to her lips, feeling her smile as they broke apart to make their way back to the house.

"Where's Enoch? I haven't seen him?"

"Oh, he's sulking. Sometimes I swear I'm dealing with two children instead of one. Peggy threw sand at him. I may have accidentally laughed and he got all huffy and stomped off. I have to apologize, but it's exhausting. Have I mentioned how good it is to have you back?" He pulled her to his side and slotted his hand with hers for the rest of the walk back. By the time they reached the house Jemma's arms ached, unused to the weight of a not so little baby and she ignored the pang in her chest. Jemma followed Fitz to their bedroom and was taken aback at the transformation. Little home made toys were scattered over every surface, an explosion of books, clothes and diapers covered the small room and a cot for Peggy sat pushed in the corner, bits of shiny metal crafted by Fitz into a mobile hanging above it.

"Sorry, everything's a mess. It's just a bit crazy around here with her" He moved to clear things away before Jemma tugged at his arm to stop him. 

"Fitz, it's fine. You kept our daughter happy and healthy, all by yourself. Babies are messy. Don't change everything just because I'm here, you're doing perfect, look at her." Peggy rested her head on Jemma's shoulder, content for the time being, curious eyes absorbing everything. Fitz smiled softly taking in the pair in front of him, Peggy staring intently at Jemma and Jemma doing the same with a matching expression of fascination, curiosity and unadulterated love. Oh, he was absolutely done for and he wouldn't have it any other way. He gathered Peggy's pajamas and lightly traced his fingers down Jemma's arm, noticing the trail of goosebumps he left behind. 

"Who wants to get in the bath?!" Fitz announced loudly and immediately became confused at the panic in Jemma's eyes so quick that he almost missed it, he would have if he wasn't staring at her like she would disappear any second. Peggy immediately started wriggling and clapping, enthusiastically chanting "Bubbles!" Jemma looked unabashedly uncomfortable and embarrassed. He watched concerned as she awkwardly walked over to him and tried to pass him their excited daughter. 

"Jem, come on it's BATH TIME. You don't want to miss this, right Monkey?"

"Mama bubbles!" Peggy exclaimed decisively and Jemma laughed and followed Fitz into the adjoining bathroom. She placed Peggy on the floor and watched her daughter and husband's routine with utter amazement. Fitz started the water while balancing a shaky, standing Peggy on an outstretched leg as she helped put all of her toys into the tub, plunking them in one by one laughing at the splashes. Fitz was about to add the necessary bubbles when he was halted by a very indignant screech.

"Nooooo Da, Mama bubbles!" He shifted to steady her with his hands instead of his leg and tickled her belly.

"Oh, I see how it is now. Mum's here, don't need me, do ya" He made her shriek with laughter, tickling her mercilessly, pulling faces at her. He glanced over at Jemma and smiled broadly.

"Go on, the Monkey demands bubbles!" Peggy screeched in excitement as Jemma added bubbles to the running water and Fitz scooped her up and lowered her into the frothy mountains. Fitz leaned over the tub and pulled Jemma next to him wordlessly.

"First, Pegs we have to defeat the sea monster don't we?" Peggy nodded, roaring, bright purple octopus in hand bursting from the bubbles as Fitz with his plastic duck and Peggy with her plastic fish in her other hand fought valiantly against the evil octopus. Peggy paused for a second and then pressed her plastic fish into Jemma's empty hand insistently. 

"That's alright, I don't need-" Jemma was cut off by Peggy roaring loudly and splashing with both hands now. Jemma sat with the fish in her hand, unsure of herself and how to insert herself back into their lives and of course, Peggy wasn't even phased, Jemma was her Mum and that was all she needed.

"Mama fishy" Peggy pulled on her limp hand and sucked her mouth together to make a fish face. Peggy sloshed the water back and forth with a maniacal laugh as she tried to get Jemma to play the game. Jemma snuck a glance at Fitz who smiled encouragingly as she finally dove into the fight, fish in hand, clacking the plastic toys together in an epic battle. They finished the bath with a gleeful, clean Peggy and a bathroom soaked thoroughly in bathwater. Fitz handed over her diaper and pajamas and waited patiently for Jemma to dress the wiggling girl. 

"Hey, I'll go make us some tea, do you want to read her a story?" Peggy's damp curls were tamed, for now, and she was curled against Jemma, eyes staying open out of sheer force of will. Jemma nodded and breathed deep, her eyes welled up at the sheer amount of love she had for this tiny little person. She carded her fingers along the swirling curls and traced the planes of her face, she did have her nose after all, it was pretty much the only thing. Jemma shifted slightly to grab the closest book on the nightstand and began to read, Peggy's weight heavy against her as she drifted off to her voice, tiny hands grasping her shirt. Jemma, unsure of how to proceed and completely content with her daughter's relaxed breathing against her, stayed put, closing her eyes and waited for Fitz to return. She opened her eyes to a shuttering click and Fitz holding up his phone with a wide smile. He walked over and deftly picked up Peggy and shifted her to her cot without the little girl moving a muscle. Fitz tipped his head toward the door and Jemma followed Fitz to the kitchen where he handed over her tea and then continued out to the balcony chairs. He switched on a baby monitor, clearly made by him, and relaxed into his chair with his tea. She studied his profile, looking for signs of change but he just seemed, if anything, more like himself again, fatherhood suited him. 

"Come here and stop staring at me, would you?" Jemma laughed and shifted to snuggle against him on his recliner. Taking both of their mugs and setting them aside, Jemma's mouth sought his, desperate and soul searing, she could feel her heart knitting itself back together. Fitz wrapped his arms around her so tight it almost hurt, but they were back together, finally. 

The next morning Jemma jolted awake, she glanced out of the window and the sun was just beginning to rise. Jemma quietly untangled herself from Fitz, pulling on whatever clothes were on the floor and started to make her way to the door. Peggy whined in her crib and she saw Fitz shift to get up. She padded over to the crib and picked up her warm, sleepy daughter.

"She probably needs her diaper changed. I can show you" Fitz murmured from his spot under his blankets. 

"Don't worry, I got it. Go back to sleep." Jemma still knew how to do this at least. She made quick work of it and grabbed the extra blanket at the end of the bed. Wrapping it around the two of them, she headed off to her original destination. She sat back in the recliner, Peggy sleeping against her chest, and watched as the sun rose over the horizon and a new day began. She stroked the now wild curls and began to speak softly to her daughter, telling her all of the things she wished she could have said over the past few months, whispered unnecessary apologies, and barely contained excitement for things she couldn't wait to show her. She laid there content with the sun warming her skin, a cool ocean breeze and the comforting weight of her daughter pressed against her. 

She opened her eyes hearing the door creak open and click shut. She craned her neck to see a shirtless Fitz walking towards her with a mug of tea in hand. God she missed this man. She smiled brightly as he passed her the mug and he perched on the end of the recliner by her feet, resting his mug free hand on the leg peeking out from the blanket, his thumb caressing the exposed skin. 

"So what is the plan, now? I assume you finished the work on the Zephyr or else you wouldn't be here. So how do we test time travel without risking getting separated from each other again or this one?" Fitz gestured to the curly haired mass curled against Jemma. Jemma chewed her lip and Fitz knew immediately that he was not going to like whatever she was about to say.

"I can't do the tests without you, I'm not willing to risk it. So what do you think, does Peggy have what it takes to be our time traveling companion?" Catching the look of disbelief on Fitz's face, she clutched their daughter more tightly and continued to talk. "Like you said, I am not willing to risk getting separated from her. I am not leaving her again, I can't, it will break me, Fitz." Tears rushed to her eyes at the thought of having to give them up again. Fitz was caught off guard at this blatant vulnerability but quickly recovered his thoughts and scooted closer to her. 

"I know, Jem. I guess there's no other option. Together or not at all, right?" He smiled hesitantly and watched her face relax as the option of leaving them behind was off the table. Peggy was now wriggling from underneath the blanket, grunting with effort of trying to break free. "Honestly, I'm surprised she sat still that long. She's usually off like a madwoman the second she opens her eyes. She missed you, clearly. We both did." He reached over and set her on the floor of the balcony, pulling a toy from seemingly out of thin air and handing it over to a happy baby. With the laser focus of both her parents she became completely engrossed by the wooden puzzle toy. "So, what's next?"

"You look over the Zephyr to make sure everything is correct and then we start testing. Small jumps first and then once we know everything is working, we go in and get everyone back" 

"Ok, let me pack some things up for her real quick and we can get started." Jemma raised her eyebrows and continued to sip her tea. 

"Why the rush to get over there?"

"Sorry, it's just the sooner we finish this, the sooner we can get our lives back, we can see our families and get that cottage. As nice as this has been, minus you leaving, obviously, I want to move forward. We can't have the cottage or a dog or more kids or anything until we get through this and that's all I want, really." Fitz finished, cheeks blushing pink as Jemma's face softened and she moved to stand with him, setting down her now empty mug. 

"Ok. Let's go then." She kissed his pink cheek and picked up Peggy heading to their bedroom to get ready for the day. Fitz shook himself out of his daze and followed her down the hallway. 

With Peggy's diaper bag packed and Peggy being wrangled by Fitz for the long walk to the Zephyr, Jemma's eyes lit up as she remembered her bags tossed by the front door. 

"Wait Fitz, I forgot, I brought presents!" Jemma ran over to her bags and promptly shoved whatever she had behind her back, grinning mischievously. 

"I have two things. Pick a hand." He tapped her left arm and eyed her with curiosity. She pulled her hand from behind her back and dangled an oddly shaped backpack on one finger.

"What is that?" He reached over plucking it from her hand, setting down Peggy to examine it. 

"It's one of those baby backpacks, but it goes on your front. It seemed like it would come in handy! What do you say Peggy, do you want to give it a try?" Peggy laughed excitedly and kicked her dangling feet and bounced joyously at her new method of transportation."Ok, now gift number two, is of course for the best baby in the whole galaxy." Jemma pulled a small plush monkey from behind her back and Peggy immediately grabbed for it making the monkey noises Fitz taught her. "Well then, I'm glad Mr. Monkey is well received " Jemma smiled brightly watching Peggy alternatively clutch her brand new toy to herself and swing the stuffed monkey wildly. Fitz grinned widely at the jubilant uproar Mr. Monkey was causing, he reached over, careful not to dislodge Peggy's new friend, and squeezed Jemma's fingers.

"Ready?" Jemma nodded and picked up their backpack with their own supplies and shouldered Peggy's bag. They spent their walk entertaining Peggy, who was fascinated by the different insect species Jemma brought over to show her before releasing them and chatting about absolutely nothing and everything. 

They boarded the Zephyr and Fitz immediately got to work while Jemma occupied Peggy. Jemma gave Peggy her fingers and let the little girl wander around on unstable legs as she stomped enthusiastically on the metal grating. The pair made their way to the control room to find Fitz underneath a panel checking wiring. 

"Fitz?" Jemma gave a little conspiratorial wink to Peggy who gave a very exaggerated blink back. 

"Yeah" 

"So more kids, huh?" She heard his head hit the panel and soft cursing.

"Now you want to bring that up?" Fitz crawled out from underneath the panel and stood up, stretching. Jemma's eyes were transfixed by the little sliver of stomach where his shirt had risen up. He still has no idea the effect he has on her. Focus, Jemma. 

"Yes, well, Peggy and I were having a conversation and...it came up?"

"Jemma, I'm not saying we get home and you pop out a parade of children. It's more of a let's talk about it and keep it on the table kind of thing."

"How many in this general fantasy are we talking about though? Are we talking two or like six?" Jemma noticed his anxious expression and realized that he must not realize that she was just teasing him, she wanted more kids with him, she was just curious what that looked like to him. She reached over and squeezed his hand, "Fitz, of course I want to have more kids with you. That was never off the table. I just, I missed so much with Peggy. I need some time with her first. Plus, we still have to get the cottage and apparently we are getting a dog? But I would love nothing more than to make another little person with you and be there with you for every single second of it. Beside you the whole damn time, deal?" Jemma smiled softly as he tightened his grip around her fingers. 

"Deal." Fitz agreed with a lingering kiss until Peggy began yelling frustrated with being ignored. They broke apart and both got back to work.

Enoch was in the kitchen when they arrived back later in the day and Jemma was genuinely happy to see the delightful weirdo. 

"Enoch! It's good to see you!" She strode over to him behind the counter and gave him a giant hug hoping that he would get past his cold shoulder with Fitz if she gave a little bit of encouragement. 

"Jemma Simmons, it is very good to see you. Fitz. Peggy." He leveled them with a cold stare before turning back to Jemma. "Human children are very volatile. But you and Fitz made a good one." Jemma smiled warmly at him and thanked him, gesturing to Fitz behind the Chronicom's back to apologize. Fitz rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically. 

"Enoch, look, I'm sorry I laughed at you on the beach." Fitz stopped and Enoch turned to him expectantly, Jemma gestured for him to continue. A grumpy Enoch was impossible to work with. Fitz ran a hand down his face to cover the annoyed expression and continued on. "I was not a good friend for laughing when a baby threw sand at you and you began to lecture her on the expectations of polite society. Or when I laughed again she just threw more sand at you. I promise I will do better, next time" Fitz schooled his expression into something vaguely solemn but he could feel the corners of his mouth twitch and the laughter started to bubble up in his chest, he needed an exit strategy, now. "I'm going to get Peggy out this contraption, Jemma, do you want to fill Enoch in?" He rushed out of the room diligently ignoring the look Jemma was giving him for abandoning ship.

**Step 3a** .

The next week passed in a blur of adjustments and tests as the three worked to ensure that their first major time jump went off without a hitch. They did a few minor jumps forwards and backwards in time but kept their location confined to the island. They were ready to make their first jump back in time with Enoch staying behind to monitor everything and to keep an eye on the ship's coordinates and readings. Fitz placed Peggy in the child safety seat he installed in the control room and she watched her parents with wide eyed wonderment as they pressed buttons and pulled levers until they were off the ground. They both reached for the lever that would send them to their already decided on location, their fingers tangled and they wore matching mad smiles reminiscent of their academy days as they pulled the final lever and with a jolt they were off. It was February 28th, 1953, hopefully. They didn't want to go back too far on their first jump so they decided to take a little visit to Cambridge on the day the Doctors Watson and Crick along with Rosalind Franklin discovered the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid, better known as DNA. They were giddy as they stepped off the ship, Peggy secured to Fitz in her carrier, the pair bickering on how best go about navigating the situation during the short walk as they made their way to Cambridge. Jemma walked confidently through the halls as Fitz followed, Peggy's babbling echoing through the quiet corridor. Jemma peeked her head in various rooms trying to find someone of importance before they headed back to their own time to confirm that this was a very successful test run. A feminine voice sounded behind them and Fitz jumped, startling Peggy. He immediately moved to quiet her, her cries amplified by the hall, and the discomfort of the stranger looking at them equal parts mystified and horrified. He didn't think they were going to meet Watson and Crick or sit in on any kind lecture like they had wanted. 

"Who are you people?" Jemma smiled too brightly and Fitz winced knowing that this was not going to be great...Jemma wasn't the best at coming up with cover stories on the fly and he was slightly worried about what was about to come out of her mouth.

"Hello, we were just looking for Doctors Watson and Crick. We wanted to talk to them about the structure of DNA, we were working on a related matter and wanted to get their expert opinions on it." The woman grimaced and let out an exasperated sigh. 

"The only expertise they have is reading my notes. But sure" Taking another dubious glance at Fitz and Peggy, "They are down that hall, third door on the right,". Jemma stood stunned at the woman who at this point seemed very impatient to escape their company. 

"I'm sorry, are you really THE ROSALIND FRANKLIN? I'm a huge fan of your work and of you and I’m really sorry about what happened and how unfair it is and I'm going to stop talking now." Fitz ran a hand over his face, exasperated, he wound his arm around Jemma's ready to remove all of them from this situation. 

"Smooth Jemma, we should get out of here, we are very much not blending." Fitz whispered through his teeth, Jemma just rolled her eyes and stuck out her hand, ignoring Fitz.

"I'm Doctor Jemma Simmons and this is my husband Doctor Leopold Fitz. Your work changed- is going to change everything. It's an honor to meet you."

"Your husband has a baby strapped to his chest. It's very odd."

"Ah, yes. Well, that's our daughter. And it's a very convenient way of carrying a child, I wouldn't say odd..."

"Nice to meet you Doctor Franklin, we really must be going now" Fitz pulled on Jemma's arm with his before Jemma could protest and headed for the exit. Once they were outside of the building, walking the path back to the Zephyr, Jemma finally seemed to snap out of her daze.

"Well, that was exciting now, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, you could call it that. Maybe next time try to play it less as an excited fangirl, though. We might as well be wearing a neon sign around our necks that says time travelers." Jemma rolled her eyes and swatted his arm. 

"It went perfectly fine, Fitz, we just met THE Rosalind Franklin! " Fitz laughed as Jemma tickled Peggy's dangling feet, the little family all uncharacteristically giddy. They boarded the ship and headed back to the island. If all goes well then they could have their friends back in no time. 

**Step 4.**

Jemma double checked the coordinates with Fitz over the radio and scanned the surroundings. Fitz and Peggy were monitoring the situation hunkered down for one last day on the island while Jemma led her new SHIELD recruits into the rescue mission. Enoch had to part ways with them, knowing he was no longer necessary, but very much required elsewhere. He had left them once they finished testing the Zephyr to help his people recolonize on an unoccupied planet. His leadership was very much needed and mostly welcomed. Jemma rechecked all of the settings and coordinates and scanned the SOS Deke sent her following their very specific instructions, well over a year ago, at this point. Jemma had tried to dig up as much as she could about their mission when she was at SHIELD HQ but she couldn't find much. It was like her friends had never existed. She had regrouped with her new SHIELD team, who stayed very busy keeping tabs on Hydras movements and doing their best to counter them where they could. They were going to need more than just the two of them and a pint sized wonder baby to pull this off, though. May was in bad shape but Jemma knew that they now had the technology to save her life, she just had to get to them first. She set off the sequence and pulled the lever to send her and her team back in time, they were going to the temple and they were getting their friends back. The landing was rocky but then again the whole situation was a tad volatile, they needed to be in and out as quick as possible. She hurried off the ship and started issuing orders to her stunned friends and her team behind her, she earned her title of Director the hard way and commanded it with confidence. Her team quickly gathered Agent May and set about following Jemma's exact instructions to save her life letting the director handle the rest of the agents and getting them on board the ship. Once everyone was strapped in, Jemma spoke into her headset and with an ease of practice she set the ship in motion, ignoring everyone's questions. The Zephyr landed once again and Jemma sprinted off without saying a word. Before anyone could even think about following her, they heard her returning footsteps and a recognizable bickering as the familiar pair made their way back up to the control room of the ship. Fitz looked up from his conversation with Jemma when he realized all eyes were trained on him. Well, not exactly on him, more focused on the exuberant baby with curious blue eyes and sandy curls strapped securely to his chest. 

"Uh, surprise?" 

"EXCUSE ME, how long have you been away exactly? YOU MADE AN ENTIRE HUMAN!" Daisy got up and smacked Fitz's arm and pulled baby Fitz-Simmons from her secure place on Fitz's chest. Everyone got up from their respective seats and crowding around the newest member of their family, smiles wide and utterly fascinated.

"Yeah, this is Peggy and we'll get to that" Jemma smiled softly watching her friend make silly faces and cooing at her daughter causing her to giggle that infectious baby laugh, showing a bright smile.

"Alright everyone, buckle up. We need to head out." Everyone still stunned, moved quickly to buckle themselves back into their seats, Fitz taking the baby from Daisy and putting her in her baby seat by the controls near them. The team watched the two move in a practiced synchronized dance as they launched themselves through time.

Once they were flying Jemma looked up to see all eyes on her. 

"So, questions?" 

"So whatcha been up to?" Been busy?" Daisy waggled her eyebrows at her and Fitz turned slightly pink and coughed. 

"Very. Invented time travel, saved Earth from a Chronicom takeover, had a baby, became interim Director of SHIELD, changed my hair, saved you from an untimely death, currently we are trying to defeat Hydra for the zillionth time, you know we like to stay busy. Oh, and Peggy here, learned how to say Zephyr and has almost got walking down, no problem." Jemma listed nonchalantly as Fitz, still blushing from the attention radiated happiness, walked over to their daughter. She immediately clutched his index finger into her round fist, babbling loudly at all the new people around her. 

"Like, Jemma said, Hydra has infiltrated SHIELD, again. With all of the new recruits and then the power vacuum when all of you supposedly died at the temple, of course Hydra waltzed right in. But lucky for SHIELD, they have Simmons." Fitz smiled brightly at his wife knowing how much that time at SHIELD HQ had taken a toll on her. "Simmons came up with a plan to get rid of them for good."

"Yes, I want to end this once and for all but we have to make a stop first, I need to go back to the beginning, we need help. Luckily, I know an expert. And honestly, I just really want to." 

"Simmons, where did you bring us?" Mack asked as he walked over to the window trying to gage where and when they were. 

"Wheaton, New Jersey. Camp Lehigh,1970, sir." Jemma looked around at her friends and how tired and broken they looked. "This is purely a fact finding mission, Fitz and I will go on ahead while you guys get cleaned up and rest. There won't be much time for that after this, I'm afraid." Fitz reached over and lifted Peggy from her seat, tickling her as he pulled her to him, peels of laughter echoing through the ship. Daisy smiled widely at the scene in front of her and stepped forward, arms open. 

"I can watch her, if you want." Jemma smiled brightly at her best friend. "Thanks, Daisy. But really, you should get some sleep. There will be plenty of Aunt Daisy/Peggy time later, I promise." Jemma hugged her friend tightly and smiled as Daisy walked over to Fitz giving him a quick side hug and smiling softly as Peggy reached out, tiny fingers clasping her black sleeve. 

"See you soon, then." The little family left the team to recuperate and headed to their destination trying to be as discreet as possible while also waltzing in to the Director of SHIELD's office undetected. They took a seat in the set of chairs in front of the desk and waited for the famed director while keeping Peggy occupied and most importantly, quiet. The pair were engrossed in a very intense game of Peek A Boo when a woman's voice sounded behind them.

“Nice baby.” Peggy Carter eyed Fitz with a baby strapped to his chest and quirked an eyebrow, completely unfazed. They both stood abruptly, nervously shaking the hand of the woman their daughter was named for and introducing themselves.

“Thanks, she’s called Peggy” Fitz stated as he shook her hand, a little bit star struck. The creator of SHIELD looked at Fitz with an unreadable emotion flicking across her face, her perfectly lined lips curving upwards as she leaned over to the bright eyed baby.

“Nice to meet you Peggy Fitz-Simmons. Don’t ever let anyone tell you you can’t do anything” She shook her little baby fist in her hand with a small smile playing across her features. “Alright, what exactly is it that you need from me?” Jemma stood frozen and completely tongue tied, for the first time in her life, her brain would not work. Fitz, as usual, knew exactly what she wanted to say and began talking, hands rapidly moving in time with his mouth, while little Peggy grabbed at his hands and babbled trying to help. Jemma's heart expanded, he always had her back, she could never explain the love that she has for this man. She finally snapped herself out of her daze, reminding herself that she is the Director of SHIELD, well was, and immediately jumped in, talking over Fitz and then the pair rapidly volleying back and forth with decades of practiced rhythm and literally sharing a brain, turning them into a single symbiotic unit. They saw the Director's shoulders square as she tensed at the mention of Hydra. Peggy Carter shook her head in amusement at the two before striding out of her office and to the elevators “Are you two coming? We have a lot of work to do.” Director Carter smiled at the happy gurgling baby curiously taking in her surroundings. “I have a reliable guy if you need a babysitter” She her hand pulled on a ring dangling from a chain around her neck and she smiled slyly. 

Fitz and Simmons headed back to the Zephyr on cloud nine. They got all of the information they needed from the Director and everything was in place now. "Our daughter was just babysat by Captain America, Jemma. CAPTAIN AMERICA. Steve Rogers just watched our daughter." 

"Our daughter just met Peggy Carter. Fitz, WE just worked with THE Peggy Carter." They both had goofy smiles stretched across their faces as they swung their clasped hands between them. "Best mission ever!" Jemma gushed still raving about every moment they spent in Peggy Carter's presence. They boarded the ship and made their way to their own room to lay Peggy down for a much needed nap before sorting through all of the information they received today. They talked quietly before coming to an agreement. Setting work aside Fitz headed to the kitchen to start on dinner while Jemma headed to the infirmary to check on Agent May, who was stable but there was nothing to be done for her but wait. Jemma joined Fitz in the kitchen, offering her assistance. The pair chopped vegetables and bickered and laughed as they prepared dinner for the team. Daisy was the first to wander in, eyes immediately scanning for her new favorite person, disappointment showing on her face when Peggy was nowhere to be found. 

"Ugh, I don't want you FitzSimmons, where's baby FitzSimmons?"

"You'll have to make do with just us for now, I'm afraid. Peggy is napping." Jemma smiled at her friend's dramatic sigh of agreement. Deke followed Daisy, stealing a few chopped carrots from the counter. 

"Nana, Bobo, where's the baby?

"I might start to get offended, honestly. She's napping. But hi." Jemma pulled her grandson into a welcomed hug before walking over to the fridge and pulling out drinks for everyone. Mack and YoYo ambled in last.

"Hey Turbo, where's little FitzSimmons?" Mack asked smiling brightly, eyes searching the room. Fitz nudged Jemma with his elbow,

"Maybe we should get offended " he offered a playful smile and turned back to Mack "She's sleeping"

"Aw, man." Mack reached over and grabbed a drink.

"What would happen if we accidentally woke her up, by accident?" Daisy bounced on her toes, taking a sip from her drink to mask the laugh at the new parents faces. "I'm kidding...mostly". Fitz glared at her as Jemma ushered everyone to the table and set down the food. Everyone piled food on their plates and reveled in a moment where they could all just be together, painfully aware of the people missing from the table. Jemma raised her glass and the others quickly followed. 

"To family. To the ones we carry in our hearts and to the ones that make every day better. It's nice to have you all back." Echoes of conversation and laughter sounded around the room and Jemma felt Fitz nudge her under the table with his knee. She nodded sharply and sadly took in the smiling faces of her family. "Fitz and I have an announcement."

"Wait, is there going to be another FitzSimmons?" Daisy exclaimed loudly until taking in Jemma's sad expression, face changing quickly from excitement to concern.

"No, not a baby. Seeing as the Director," Jemma smiled warmly at Mack " Is now back, there is no need for me to continue as Interim Director." Jemma paused squeezing Daisy's hand. "This was our final mission as active field agents. Once we've briefed you all, there are coordinates set to drop us off in the morning." Daisy's eyes went glassy and Jemma's own filled with tears as Daisy pulled her hand away and rushed from the table. The silence was ear shattering as they all stared unseeing, unsure of how to accept this goodbye. Mack stood up suddenly. 

"Agent Fitz, Director Simmons, I accept your resignation on the conditions that you remain available as consultants and you send weekly reports on little FitzSimmons...with pictures." Mack stuck out his hand and Simmons shook it, smiling sadly. 

"We gladly accept those terms, Director."

"Simmons, it's been an honor ." Mack smiled widely and moved to shake Fitz's hand before deciding instead to pull him into another bone crushing hug.

"Turbo." Mack's emotions getting the best of him, not quite knowing what to say.

"Mack. It's been quite a few years" Fitz laughed, still crushed in his friend's massive biceps, he could feel the laugh reverberate through Mack's chest before he finally set him back on his feet.

"Yeah, it has. Who would have thought this is where we’d be all of those years ago?"

"You Director, me married. Not in a million years."

"Not a chance." 

Jemma left the kitchen to find Daisy and found her easily, following the sounds of her daughter's joyous shrieks. She leaned against the doorframe of her and Fitz's bunk, Peggy bouncing happily in Daisy's arms as her friend talked softly into her curls. Peggy clapped and shouted loudly "Again!" Daisy shifted her grip on the little girl, eyes wide with excitement as she gently quaked Mr. Monkey into the air and across the room. Peggy laughed loudly and Jemma cleared her throat before entering the room and sitting down across from the besotted pair. 

“Geez, what did Mr. Monkey ever do to you?”

"Uh, we weren't doing anything, she was already awake, I swear." Daisy hid behind her tiny body peeking through her curls to see her friend laughing at her.

"I saw nothing." Jemma smirked and leaned over to tickle Peggy's belly, laughter filling the room. 

"So, you're leaving?"

"Yeah, we talked about it and as much as we hate to leave you guys, I think it's the right time."

"But you started all of this, I mean you're the Director. You put all of this together and you're going to just walk away?"

"Now that Mack is back, I am no longer needed as Director, besides you guys can handle this. We can't keep doing just one more mission, we'll never stop. I got you guys back, now you can finish it. Besides, I don't think it's fair to ask Peggy here to take on Hydra before her first birthday, do you? There's too much to lose now, Daisy" Jemma stroked the smiling cheek of her daughter before grabbing her best friend's hand. "I had to leave Fitz and Peggy behind for months, I missed so much, Daisy. I came back from SHIELD and she was this little person already. I don't want to miss anything else and I can't keep risking Fitz. You see it right? He's getting better, he’s more like himself again. I love you, so much and you will always be a part of our family, as long as you want, but this life? It's not for us anymore."

"I love you too, obviously" Daisy quickly wiped a tear from her eye, "It will be hard. I don't know what SHIELD looks like without you nerds there with me. You've always been there for me and I don't want to, no, I can't say goodbye to you. And definitely not to her. You guys make really cute babies. Shocker, you two are good at everything."

"This isn't goodbye, Daisy. It's, see you later. Like at Peggy's first birthday. I will expect her number one Aunt upfront and center to help blow out her candles. And Christmas, to see whatever monstrosity Fitz creates for her first Christmas present and Halloween to dress up in ridiculous matching costumes. Just no more field missions for this little one."

"Unless she signs up for them herself in like 10 years. You know she's like a baby genius right?"

"Yeah, a bit. But she hasn't even been to a proper doctor yet. I know it will be hard, but it's the right thing to do. Besides, I know you can kick Hydra's ass back into the last decade all by yourself." Daisy smirked about to agree when Peggy chimed in helpfully,

"Hydra ass!" Peggy clapped loudly, repeating her newly learned phrase.

"Yeah, you tell her baby genius!" Daisy laughed at her friend's mortified expression. 

"Oh god. Fitz is going to kill me. No, Peggy. That's a bad word. Let's please stop saying that!" Both Daisy and Peggy bounced around the room chanting "Hydra ass" until Fitz himself walked in and everyone abruptly stopped. 

"Ok. Everything alright in here?" Fitz raised his eyebrows when he was met with silent snickers until Peggy abruptly reached for him and he smoothly caught her wriggling body from Daisy. 

"Da!" The little girl snuggled her face into his chest and bounced in his arms excitedly. "Hydra ass!" Fitz fixed both women in the room with a glare and turned to Peggy.

"Alright Agent Peggy. Leave Hydra's ass to Aunt Daisy. How about we go get some dinner? Are you hungry?" Peggy jumped up and down in his grip at the prospect of dinner.

"Jem, do you want to gather everyone and start the debrief and I'll come in after I've fed the monkey?"

"Yeah, I can do that." Daisy leaned over and pulled her up from her spot on the floor and they all headed out for their final debrief.

Early the next morning they rose, sadness and nostalgia weighing heavy on them. Their bags were packed, the team was briefed, and it was time to go. Yoyo set the coordinates and they all gathered at the ramp. Yoyo and Daisy made quick work of transferring all of their belongings to the little cottage nestled in the hills of Scotland waiting for them outside. A gift from Enoch, for saving his people, despite the manner in which they were originally forced. They said their final goodbyes, eyes wet with tears as they looked around one last time. Agents Fitz and Simmons walked down the ramp leaving the team behind to finish what they started, their future stretching out before them, bright and shining like a morning sunrise.

  
  



End file.
